Tumgik
#if she follows her usual publishing schedule
bookwyrminspiration · 2 months
Text
shannon introduced elysian stepping out of thin air claiming to be a power source, called it the biggest secret of the lost cities she's been keeping for over a decade, then said peace see you in at least 3 years. and honestly. power move
174 notes · View notes
averageallogene · 8 months
Text
Lyney ♡⊹˚ His lucky charm [NSFW]
Tumblr media
✧˖°. Summary: Before his most recent shows, Lyney seems to have some nervousness regarding his abilities as a magician. Thankfully, his lovely girlfriend is always there to ease his mind beforehand, providing him with the luck her magician boyfriend needs.
Tumblr media
fem. reader (3rd person) ; this is basically smut with little more than an intro to it, so beware. Also SPOILERS for ACT I of the first Fontaine Archon Quest. 
5k words.
notes. Hi yes hello I am back, I have played the two Archon Quests, and after working a little for my thesis I decided to write something by my own volition <3. I’m not sure if Lyney here might be portrayed accurately but nonetheless I really wanted to write a smaller piece for him before doing it for other characters! He’s adorable :( ♡ Enjoy ✧˖°
Tumblr media
By clicking on the “expand”, you are hereby agreeing to view NSFW content. PLEASE if you are under 18, DO NOT INTERACT. 
PLEASE do not report, as this is my warning to those who do not wish to view NSFW. I, like most writers, work hard on each piece we choose to publish, and reporting it will decrease the number of readers it reaches... Thank you for understanding ✧˖°
Tumblr media
Magicians have no need for something many folk cling onto - luck. After all, every trick they perform is something they study, polish, rearrange, rehearse. Everything is staged to the finest of details, leaving no room for unpredictable variables to enter the equation. Every performance is acted out accordingly, a mental checklist going on inside the performer's mind as each prop is placed and moved about, each line is repeated from the rehearsals, each movement in one’s body is carefully played out. Everything is a carefully crafted performance, and what need do they have for luck? None.
To Lyney, such is the truth. Well, at least this philosophy held itself rock solid, up until the incident that nearly landed him a guilty verdict. Despite his confidence in his abilities to wow the crowds, even before there would always be a small but ever present pitter patter to his heart, a quiet reminder of his own nervousness before the show would begin. He would usually handle himself most well, though through the eyes of those closest to them, the normal feeling of “performance jitters” wasn’t all that well hidden. Well, and if that were the case, more so after things went back to normal.
His breathing would be a little more unstable, his fingers would fidget with one of his cards as his eyes darted about his changing room. He would fiddle with his exquisite hat, rebraid his hair while trying to ease himself. Things had gone back to normal, their scheduled shows were once more popular and always fully booked. Yet still, there always was this sense of anxiety deep in his stomach, never truly going away as he quietly wondered if the show would go as planned. 
Well, thankfully he had someone to help ease his mind each time. And as if right on que as he brooded over the upcoming performance, a knock to his dressing room was heard, the door opening to reveal the loveliest of sights. At the door stood [F/N], his lovely girlfriend who would always visit him before he went on stage. 
“Hi Lyney! Hope I’m not intruding?” She asked sweetly, smiling his way which only helped to ease his worries.
“You never are, my love. Come in!” He breathes out, the eagerness to have her close not quite passing unnoticed to her. He extends his arms before fully taking her in his embrace, sighing deeply as he inhales the familiar perfume she would always wear. His favorite. 
“How are you feeling?” [F/N]’s voice grows softer, her arms resting around his lower back as she smiles his way. The silence that follows is enough of an answer, her magician simply distracting himself with playing with the tips of her hair. “...Nervous?”
“...Hah, why it seems nothing really blinks past you. I may have taught you… Too well…” He jests, the smile on his face betraying him before it drops slightly. It reveals some of his vulnerability for her, his violet eyes locking with her own before he speaks up again. “I suppose it’s just some performance jitters again, nothing new...”
“It’s okay Lyney. You’ll do great, I know so.” Her smile shone brighter than the very sun, beaming with warmth that was only cast to him. It comforted his very being, filling his conflicted heart with sugary sweetness that only soothed him in a way no one else could. And if that wasn’t enough, the next few sentences were the ones that would always, always seal the deal for him. “Everything will go well, and everyone will be wowed by your hard work. I’m proud of you.”
It was as though his heart was struck, pierced with cupid’s arrow as he couldn’t keep up the calm and confident act. Lyney’s body visibly relaxed, a content snicker escaping his lips as his arms brought her closer. His lips were quicker than his words, filling her face with brief yet lovely kisses, watching with glee as she giggled as a response. Amidst each kiss he whispered words of gratitude for her support, his hands roaming throughout her lower back as he yearned to feel her closer and closer. 
“Lyney… You didn’t even let me finish!” She laughed, her words being cut off with a deeper kiss as his lips found her own. She could feel his smile against her lips, the magician quite literally stealing her breath away before finally pulling away. 
“Oh, I’m sorry dear. I just can’t contain myself, you’re just too adorable for me to!” He sighed, the flamboyant hum in which he spoke glittering the otherwise full truth she very well knew. “To think a professional magician would be wowed in such a way, you’ll be the death of me…”
“You almost make it sound like I’m such a bad thing.” [F/N] rolled her eyes playfully, her fingers carefully adjusting his hair before inspecting to see if his braid was well done. 
It was in small moments like so that Lyney would cease to speak, allowing his beloved to do as she pleased. His eyes would focus solely on her, watching how her expression would shift, her eyes roaming about to ensure he looked his absolute best. He could feel his heart beating hard against his ribcage, no longer solely because of the nervousness he would feel before each one of his shows. The mere sight of his girlfriend was enough to blow away the growing blaze of anxiety, leaving it only in embers that with time would cease. Her mere care, her mere nature, her beauty inside out… 
It was enough to leave Lyney riddled into little more than a lovesick puppy, the loopy smile upon his pretty face being reserved only for her. 
“Lyney?” [F/N] called for him once more, watching as he finally seemed to come back to. His hands were roaming around her hips, carefully circling around her figure as he finally let out a soft hum for her to continue. “You’re a little too quiet… Everything okay?”
“I’m so lucky to have you, [F/N]...”
It was her turn to be left speechless, her face morphing to surprise as their gazes locked. He watched as the loveliest shade of red adorned her cheeks, the flusteredness he’d often cause on her never failing to amuse him. Still, despite so, he hoped she knew just how sincere he was with his words. 
“Oh Archons… What’s gotten into you?” Her voice whined a little lower, her eyes turning away to avoid him for a mere instance in which her flusteredness was still far too raw. She could feel how his lips chased after her skin, peppering her with light and soft kisses by the corner of her mouth. 
“Nothing.” He responded, his usual flair dropping to soft whispers as he carefully turned her around, helping her have a seat on his vanity. Between fleeting kisses, Lyney took the opportunity to bring himself between her legs, his hands never letting her stray far from himself. “I just wish to remind you more often, because it’s the truth.”
“Well I think it’s the other way around, you know… I’m the one that’s lucky here.” [F/N] smiled softly, her hands finding rest on his shoulders before gently massaging his tense muscles. Her boyfriend leaned back, his eyes gleaming with a twinkle that seemed familiar, one of challenge and mischievousness that would often leave her questioning before finally realizing what he’d plotted. 
“My my, is that so?” He hummed, head tilting to the side while his grip on her tightened ever so slightly. “If that’s the case, how come each time you visit me beforehand, every show I perform runs far better than what I expect?”
“Oh, you’re really running with that?” She giggled, music to his ears. “Only because I kissed you that one time, telling you it would bring you good luck?”
“And did that show not go beyond amazing? In fact, I do believe that was the peak in my career thus far.” He reasoned with a nod to his head, kissing her deeply before resting his forehead against her own. “Therefore, I’m the lucky one here, and you my dear [F/N], are my lucky charm.”
“Oh Lyney…” She sighed softly, stroking her hand through his blond locks slowly. “I didn’t know that tonight my magician was planning to turn me into putty in his hands.”
It was his turn to laugh, quietly, yet full of warmth and endearment. “It’s what you get for stealing this magician’s heart long ago.”
“Ah! I’m gone. Goodbye Fontaine, I am melting from my boyfriend’s words!” [F/N] leaned back dramatically, Lyney catching her before she would fall too far and hit her head against the large mirror of his vanity. The pair laughed in unison, fingers interlacing as he brought her close to himself once more.
“You’ve definitely gotten that dramatic flair from me.” He pointed out, his free hand now resting firmly on her thigh. He watched with hearts in his eyes as she giggled at his comment, shrugging her shoulders before bringing him closer with her legs. 
“I love you.” [F/N] whispered, leaning forward before it being her turn to steal a few kisses for herself. 
It never stopped after that though, one going after the other, kisses lingering longer before them turning into a longer makeout session. The way her lips were always so soft, so warm, the faint taste of her favorite chapstick melting against his own, it never failed to leave Lyney yearning for more, his whole being focusing solely on his lover whilst everything else blurred around them. His tongue carefully peeked through his own lips before swiping across her own, the grin being felt against her mouth as he felt her jolt slightly from the antic. Giving him permission to continue, Lyney carefully led the dance, his tongue meeting her own as they both ignored the need of air, muffled breaths fanning one another as their hands held the other closer, tighter. Before he knew it he was leaning himself forward and her backwards, a little more, his body pressing against her own before they were practically bent with her head touching the mirror behind them. Her legs were pressed against his sides, never letting him stray too far, her hands stroking through his back and hair, sending shivers down his spine as sparks ignited deep within him. 
“L…Lyn-ney…” She murmured between breaths, him finally tilting his head so the two of them could breathe. The way her tongue stuck out of her mouth as she breathed heavily seemed to only entice something further deep within him. “W…What about your show?”
“Worried about that?” He inquired, the clear endearment for her concern being evident in his tone of voice. He leaned closer, voice whispering as he slowly licked the strand of saliva that had dropped down her chin. “We still have time, if that’s what’s troubling you dear.”
“H-Hah…” The words seemed to get stuck on her throat as his hands maneuvered around her frame, carefully parting her legs a little more to give him better access. His fingers quickly grabbed a hold of the hem of her dress, lifting it up slightly before resting his palm on her warm thigh, his lips still remaining close to her own as his very being craved more of her.
“Do you want me to stop?” Lyney softly asked, leaning back as his own breath grew uneven. His face too displayed a lovely shade of pink, his lips redder after the relentless kisses she’d given him. His eyes were glittering with excitement, half-lidded with pure love as he waited for her response. His thumb was caressing her skin softly, the circular motion he did easing her more than arousing her as he searched for her honest answer.
It was embarrassing to admit, but [F/N] absolutely did not want to stop. Her body felt far too hot for her to go back on it now. “I… N-No.”
“Are you certain, dear?” He leaned closer, eyes squinting softly as his breath fanned her face. His hands slithered a little more upwards, giving her goosebumps as they traveled up to her hips. “I don’t want to put you in any situation that might be even a little uncomfortable… I will understand if this is-”
“N-No Lyney, I’m okay.” She nodded her head to reassure him, her hands gripping his clothing tighter as if not wanting him to move an inch away. “I admit, it’s… A bit nerve wracking, given the place but… I still don’t want you to stop.”
He bit his lip, smiling with both excitement and apology. “I’m sorry love, I always seem to get carried away when it’s about you.”
It definitely was the truth, especially given with the way his hands moved around her body. There was always a certain kind of care in each movement, his grip upon her skin tight and loving, as if reassuring himself she was there, with him. Lyney was both selfish and giving when it came to his beloved [F/N], always wanting more for himself, yet always wanting to reassure her she felt properly adored.  
“We’ll have to be-” He kissed her again, followed by another, her lips trying to keep up with his own as he gave her fleeting kisses. “Very quiet- Okay?”
“M-Mhm.” She nodded her head, her face blushing a deeper shade of red as his fingers finally lifted her skirt up. Her own hands helped him hold it up for him, watching him as it finally dawned on her, his figure getting nice and cozy in between her legs before he kneeled down. “L-Lyney?”
The grin he gave her was enough to make her lower region throb. 
“I’m craving a taste of you, baby. Could you please indulge me?” He whispered, his hands parting her legs before resting securely against them. His head turned to her left thigh, leaving a trail of small bites and kisses as he came closer, delighting himself in every reaction she offered him, every gasp and jump, every attempt at caging his head in between her legs. 
“J-Just- Don’t tease me, please.” [F/N] outright pleaded, earning herself an honest nod of his head as his eyes sparkled in anticipation. 
Carefully, her eyes jumped back at the closed door before going back to him, her breath trembling as she breathed out from her parted lips. Whilst one hand held her dress up, the other slowly lowered, helping him to remove the lacey underwear that hid his most wanted prize away. And with a lift of her hips, they were off easily, hanging by her ankle as Lyney’s gaze focused solely on the erotic view before him. His [F/N], holding her dress up for him, sat on his vanity as her chest rose and lowered irregularly, her pussy in full display for him alone. It was enough to get him aroused, the fabric of his own clothes becoming far too constricting as he felt his boner raging to be freed.
His experienced hands crept closer, thumbs slowly hovering her juicy lips before deliciously parting them. He could feel his mouth go dry in an instance, the view of her leaking pussy outright hypnotizing him as she let out a quiet moan. He couldn’t help himself but play around with her pussy lips a little, after all, how could he not? The way her pretty hole would throb in want, leaking out her nectar only for him, dripping down her skin and onto his table, the squelching sounds being nearly enough for him to lose all sense of control. He couldn’t help himself but stare, watch in lust before her soft moans and whines became a little too loud, all the while still arousing him even further.
“Lyney!” She pleaded in a whisper, the pout she offered him sending his heart racing. 
“Yes, you’re right baby… I’m sorry.” He hummed, leaning forth before finally giving her heat a long, slow and deep lick. The vibrations from his hum resonated with her pussy, sending pleasant shockwaves throughout her body as she shut her lips right before moaning. “We’re gonna have to be quieter, love. Can you do that for me?” 
It was difficult to hear him when he was practically squishing his face against her pussy, yet from the mere fact he’d stopped, [F/N] had been able to deduct what he wanted from her quickly enough. She nodded her head eagerly, blushing even deeper as she bit her lip.
“Mhm… ‘M sorry…”
It truly divided Lyney’s heart in two, for he absolutely adored hearing every sound [F/N] would bless him with. Her voice already was pure melody for his ears, all the more when she would be moaning due to his administrations. However, the pure excitement of their ordeal, having a chance of being caught, it was enough to keep him going, to entice him to lick more, to lap around her clit again, to suckle on it whilst plunging one of his fingers deep inside. The way his beloved would instead jolt more often, writhe above him, attempt to suffocate him as her legs tried to close around him, all to not be as vocal, it all had him entranced. 
"You taste so good…" He groaned against her folds, his tongue practically spelling out his love for her as he ate her out with such passion. The groans and sighs that would escape him would only please her further, sending [F/N] closer and closer to her own release as she practically bit down her tongue to quiet out her own moans. Lyney simply couldn't have enough of her taste, lapping every last drop to his greedy tongue as he yearned for more, fingering and licking it out of her as he could feel her gummy walls throb against his fingers. "You're so wet, too… So dirty, my angel."
"L-Lyney…" She mumbled, her erotic whine finally pulling him out of his trance to look her way. By that point she'd already held her fingers around his hair, him not even noticing up until that very moment. 
His light eyes glanced up, for a moment the magician forgetting how to even breathe. It felt as though the wind was knocked out of him, staring up to see his beloved gazing down at him with such a needy look. Her cheeks were flushed, the thin layer of sweat visible on her forehead as her grip on his hair tightened softly. Her teeth were by that point gritting tightly against the hem of her dress, it being her faint attempt at keeping her noises down to a minimum as he ate her out to his heart's content. The view was dirty, marvelous. The dress was lifted to such a way he could now see part of her tummy as well, her body lined with sweat as it reacted to every little touch he gave her. 
It drove Lyney over the edge. He couldn't wait any longer. The breath finally left his mouth in a shaky notion, her thighs shaking like jello as it hit her bare pussy before he got up. 
"Gods, you're so gorgeous [F/N]." He outright moaned, his fingers carefully taking the fabric out of her mouth. He watched how she heaved deeply, her lips tempting him to latch onto them. And who was he to refuse, but a poor magician whose heart had been stolen by the woman before him?
He leaned in quickly, capturing her lips against his own as they both moaned against one another. Their hands couldn't let go of the other, fiddling with their clothes as they attempted to find the best position to finally get what they both wanted. [F/N] leaned herself to the edge of the table, her legs still apart for him as her fingers now fiddled with his belt, unbuckling it before finally freeing him of his leather shorts. Lyney could feel his cock throbbing already, eager to finally plunge inside of her spongy walls and ease the yearning he so deeply felt. He groaned against her lips as she finally freed his hard length, pumping it for him slowly as it was now her turn to suck on his tongue with her own lips. 
"I need you, Lyney…" [F/N] moaned, helping him to part her legs further as he kept his face closer to her own. 
"I know, baby, I know. It's only fair I indulge you after you've treated me so well, right?" He hummed with a smile, all the while his face indicating just how excited he was. 
He grunted quietly as he carefully rubbed his cock against her leaking folds, the two of them attempting to quiet their moans down to the best of their abilities. [F/N] could feel how the particularly protruding vein on the side of his cock rubbed against her pussy, sending tears to the corners of her eyes as she felt herself closer and closer to her release after being so well tended to by her lover. Lyney in turn kissed her tears away, his lips never leaving her face as he practically gulped down her moans to himself. After coating both her pussy with his pre and his cock with her bountiful juices he stopped, lining himself with her entrance before, with a glance shared, he carefully thrusted himself inside.
His hands gripped onto her knees, his lips shutting themselves tightly so as to not moan out as he often would. The way his eyebrows furrowed as he attempted to not voice much of the obvious pleasure he was feeling was a delightful view, [F/N]'s face blushing madly as she brought him closer. Her arms wrapped around him tightly as she hid her face against his neck, her lips pressing against his skin as she quietly whimpered in pleasure. 
"Ah, Lyney!" She moaned quietly, her nails digging into his shoulders as his own sighs of pleasure hit her ear. 
"You're so tight, baby-" He in turn hissed gently, feeling how her spongy walls swallowed him whole as he finally bottomed out. His own hands were gripping harshly against her skin, the two of them sharing moans between one another even as his tip hit her deepest part. "Fuck, you're so wet. It feels so good."
"Please Lyney, give me more…" [F/N] pleaded to him, her eyes wide and glistening with pleasure as she leaned back for an instance. At that point she was once more leaning back against the rest of his vanity, granting him access to pound as deeply as his heart desired. The mere sight of her in such a way was enough for him to derail. 
"Archons, anything for you [F/N]." The magician grunted, his hands leaving her knees as his lips latched onto her own. 
By her own she was able to open her legs as widely as possible, the hem of her dress covering everything from the mid-thigh up as her hands were far too busy around his body. They wrapped around him tightly, effectively caging Lyney in between her much to his contentment. His own hands were busy holding her as close as possible, resting on her hips securely as to not knock her or anything else out, the items on his furniture tumbling slightly with every thrust he pounded into her needy core. With each time he bottomed out Lyney reached deeper, the tip of his cock effectively kissing her cervix as he molded her walls to his shape. He drank her every moan as if he worshiped all sounds she offered, his lips sucking on her tongue in such a lewd manner that he couldn't help but grin over how she squeezed him harder over it. 
"Hyaahhhh, Hinhey…" [F/N] attempted to moan his name out, her puffy lips parted as his own toyed with her tongue to his pleasure. 
He could feel the way she was milking him dry, her juices thoroughly coating his cock generously as her pussy practically praised and outright worshiped him. Her walls throbbed deliriously, sending him closer and closer to his edge as he fucked her through what he very well knew was her approaching orgasm. 
"Is my baby- Close?" He leaned back to speak, humming quietly while licking his own lips eagerly. He watched as she nodded her head quickly, her fingers combing through his hair slowly, deeply. Just how he loved it. "Here, cum for me will you? You can take me like this as you do, right baby?"
[F/N] bit her lip, nodding her head again. She watched how one of his hands left her hips, holding it up for her to take it. His girlfriend took it without thinking twice, their fingers lacing together before Lyney held them against his mirror, his pace quickening up. Once more he glued his lips to hers, never quite truly satisfied with her kisses just as much as he never quite got enough of her pussy. Her breath against him grew ragged, her moans growing ever louder, all while trying to suppress them in what he could only find the cutest whines. He bent her more, held her tighter, he pounded deeper into her. He could feel her moans vibrate against his mouth before she finally gasped, a high pitched sob being all she could muster before her inner walls violently spasmed around him, creaming his cock bountifully as she rode her high. Even still, just as he'd asked her to, Lyney continued to thrust, still as deeply albeit slower, letting her savor her release just as he quickly followed with his closing one. 
"Gyah, L-Lyney-!" [F/N] moaned against him, he in turn shushed her in understanding. "Mmm, t-to much!"
"I'm so close baby, so close…" He whispered, his thrusts a little less rhythmic as he tried to focus. His eyes opened to gaze deeply into hers, the sight of her red cheeks and unfocused eyes only edging him further deep into the abyss of pleasure. "Can you please take it just a little more? Just like this…”
“Mhm…” She eagerly nodded her head, the tears of overstimulation streaming down her face sending a long shiver down his spine. His free hand came to rest upon the side of her face, thumb clearing the tears away as his grip on her other hand tightened. “I-Inside, please.”
He bit his tongue gently as he smiled, nodding his head before pulling her head closer for a deep kiss. “Anything for my lovely lady.”
Against him she moaned, him in unison as he felt the knot deep inside himself finally snap. Lyney felt his eyes shut, a deep low grunt leaving his throat before he finally felt his release wash over him. He thrusted deeper still, his pace finally slowing down as thick ropes of seed flooded over [F/N]’s inner walls. Her womb was eager to receive the abundant load, being painted white from inside out as it overflowed whilst he still remained sheathed inside. Whilst their fingers were still locked she brought him closer, holding him tightly as her body shivered with the overstimulation. Lyney could feel his breath finally begin to slow down, a few final slow thrusts of his hips following as he moaned quietly, ensuring he was milked for all he was worth. He held his [F/N] close, as close as possible, their bodies finally relaxing as they rested atop his vanity, her body welcoming him closer as his seed leaked down and dropped onto the ground.
Even as she still regulated her breath, lips puffy and red and mascara slightly smudged from the sweat and tears, Lyney lunged forward, capturing her lips for the millionth time. Never satiated, like the greedy man he was at heart, he smiled against her as he enveloped her closer, relishing a moment longer. The silence that followed felt comforting, the two of them sighing in bliss as he felt her arms around his figure. 
“Sorry… It must’ve been uncomfortable to sit like that, on such a surface.” He stated, eyebrows furrowing softly as his thumbs cleared her smudged makeup as much as he could. Lyney dared not move, still not even wanting to pull out. It wasn’t as though he could anyway, for the way [F/N]’s legs captured him definitely sent a message for him to stay a little longer.
“Mhm, it’s fine… I enjoyed it all the same.” She smiled sheepishly, relishing in his soft touches as she in turn rearranged his side swept bangs. 
“I’m glad.” He sighed in relief, the pair too engrossed into one another to even notice how some bottles had tumbled over amidst their frolicking. “Still, next time I’ll be sure to make up for it, for all of it.”
“Lyney, truly it’s fine!” [F/N] laughed softly, finally opening her legs for him to move more freely. She watched in amusement how her boyfriend coughed softly upon noticing how heavy she leaked, rummaging through the room to find a towel he could dampen to help clean up. “Sorry… We might’ve taken too long, no?”
“Hey, if anything it’s my fault… It’s what I get for being so greedy.” He reassured her with a sincere smile, carefully helping her to clean up before dressing her back up. [F/N] watched as he fanned his face with his hand, the blush on his face still evident as she helped him dress up as well, a snicker escaping her pretty lips at the sight. 
“Well… I still… Very much enjoyed it.” [F/N] reiterated, her voice low as she helped him button up his undershirt. His smile was difficult to ignore, especially so as she helped him retrace the tear he would always paint on his right cheek. 
“...I did, too.” He pulled her closer by the waist, smiling in a devilish, albeit inoffensive manner. He pulled her closer, stealing a deeper kiss as he relished on the taste of her lips, hoping to steal some of her chapstick for himself so he could taste it all throughout his performance. As he pulled away, he whispered quietly to her, fingers playing with the end of her hair. “...Maybe next time we do this, I can have you turned to my mirror. The faces you make are simply delicious, my dear.”
The way [F/N]’s face turned to utter surprise was enough of a reaction, the magician following with a sneaky laugh as he pinched her behind as the cherry on top. In turn, his girlfriend gently slapped his arm, huffing as her cheeks turned bright red, his laughter becoming louder as a result.
“Lyney!” She groaned, nearly turning around from him in embarrassment.
“Alright, alright, I’m sorry baby! Mostly.” He chuckled, embracing her before kissing her cheek with the usual level of endearment that was solely reserved for her. 
“Hmph…” She pouted, though both knew it wasn’t something to last long. “...Good luck on your show, honey.”
“After this? It’ll be the best show yet…” He in turn whispered, his forehead resting against her head as they quieted down. “I’ll see you after?”
“I’ll be waiting here.” [F/N] smiled softly, them embracing one another before finally deciding to part.
Well, Lyney had always been energetic in his performances, yet there seemed to be an improvement on that particular one. True to his word, that performance definitely did do amazingly well, becoming the talk of the following weeks.
All thanks to his lucky charm.
Tumblr media
984 notes · View notes
muns-quinn · 3 months
Text
Life After Dark
Part one - part two here
Eddie Munson x stevessister!reader
WARNINGS: 18+ ONLY MINORS DNI, smut, p in v (wrap it before you tap it), oral (f receiving), weed, alcohol, language
A/N: I’m completely out of my element since I haven’t written in agesssss so I apologize in advance lmao it isn’t my best work. It’s more of a slow burn at first but it’ll get there eventually. I probably won’t publish my work as fast as I did previously because of my schedule and I also just want to enjoy writing because I want to do it. I apologize in advance for any mistakes, typos, anything that doesn’t make sense, etc. Also, this will be a series so this is part one!
Playlist that I listened to/made up while writing this.
Tumblr media
Being a Harrington wasn’t the easiest thing in the world. Everyone knew your family, it started from your parents and then your older brother Steve added onto that during his high school years. The family name was truly something that nobody could forget and you had to live up to it to the best of your abilities.
Though you had your differences and fought with each other like any other sibling group, you were close. You shared some of the same friends, been through things together that others normally wouldn’t, but most importantly you protected each other in any way you could.
The sound of the cold spring rain hit against your ceiling and the scent of your freshly washed hair flows through your nostrils as you hear your parents bickering back and forth, getting louder with each sentence. You run your brush through your hair and place it onto your nightstand before turning your doorknob and walking downstairs. There was half a pot of coffee left over in the kitchen and there was a pile of dirty dishes left in the sink, what a fantastic way to start your day.
“I think you’ve got more than enough packed for the week.” You hear your dad grumble from the top of the stairs, dragging down their suitcases.
“I don’t think you’ve packed near enough.” Your mom replied as she follows him down the steps.
Another thing about you and Steve was the fact that you practically had to raise yourselves. Your parents were extremely respected in town, however they were barely home because of their out of town business meetings. They’re usually gone from days to weeks on end because of the company, yet they always give the two of you specific rules to follow.
“Make sure the both of you are in the house by 11.” Your mom orders you, both of her hands full with bags filled with her things.
“Mhm.” You agreed absentmindedly, pouring yourself a cup of coffee.
“Nobody’s staying over either. He goes to work, you do your volunteer work, and you both get home. Got it?” Your dad adds.
“Got it.” You mutter, taking a sip.
They quickly rush out of the door, your dad closing it with a slam and the house goes to complete silence again. The peaceful sound you’ve grown to love and appreciate over the years, the sound of positivity and pure bliss from your chaotic life.
Steve walks down the stairs still half asleep, his hair an absolute mess and his eyes barely open. He makes his way to the coffee pot, pouring what’s left of it in his individual mug. You finish yours off before placing it with the rest of the dirty dishes in the sink, dreading the clean up once you get home.
“What time’s your shift?” You question him.
“10-7.” He grumbles tiredly. “Ah shit, you’ve got that volunteer work this week don’t you?”
“Yeah. I’m sure I can walk home, just need you to take me there since it’s raining if that’s alright.” You explain.
“Yeah that’s fine, when do you have to leave?”
“In abouttttt… 8 minutes.” You mention as you glance over to the clock.
9:28 am
Shit. Steve was going to be late for work if he didn’t hurry. He leaves his mug on the counter and zooms past you and up the stairs, immediately running into his room to get ready for his shift. You place his mug in the same sink and walk over to your front door and grab your shoes before sliding them on and tying the shoe laces. You hear Steve complaining and expressing profanities, occasionally hearing the sound of something falling over and hitting the ground as he runs around.
“In the car!” He urges as he runs down the stairs.
You follow his directions and rush outside and to the car, hopping in the front seat and buckling in. He locked the front door and ran to the drivers side, jumping in and scurrying onto the road.
“Library, right?” He verified.
“You would be correct.” You nod.
In order to graduate Hawkins High, you had to have 20 hours of volunteer work before the end of the spring semester. As always, you waited until the last second to choose where you wanted to volunteer so the only open available slots were at the library. You didn’t mind, you’ve been there plenty of times and enjoyed the silence it offered, so it could have gotten worse. With that being said, you also waited until the last second to begin with your volunteer work so you had to volunteer for the entirety of your spring break.
Steve sped through town in order to get to work on time since he was on his last strike and didn’t want to lose his job. He shows up at the library, barely stopping the car to allow you out before he drives back off down the road. The rain was beating down onto your hair as you run inside, the cool air fanning your face as you walk inside of the library. You stroll over to the front desk, finding the sign in sheet for the volunteer work and you sign your name.
“Good to see you again, sweetie.” The older woman smiles at you as she turns around, you smile back in reply.
“What can I help you with today?” You ask, she looks around at the empty library, jotting down a to do list on a small sheet of paper.
• Reorganize the non-fiction section by author name
• Retape magazines that are falling apart
• Wipe down any surface with dust
• Reorganize the fiction section by author name
The list was nearly endless, but you took it with a smile anyway.
“If you need any help, you know where to find me.” She winks, her glasses showing your reflection back to you.
“Thank you, Alorie.” You nod, turning on your heels and walking over to the non-fiction section.
You kneel in front of the first bookcase that catches your eye, looking at the unorganized mess of books. If you come into a library, at least have the decency to put the books back in the correct order you think to yourself. You begin to move the books around but figured that it would be easier to take each book off the shelf and put them in correctly one at a time. You knew it was going to be an incredibly long 5 hours.
Shortly after you begin working on your to do list, people of all ages started to flood into the library. The younger children were squealing as they tossed around books that you knew you were going to have to fix, teachers from school came to drop off books they read in their free time, and others arrived just so they could get out of the rain.
Once the first task was done, you moved on to the second, retaping the ripped magazines. Alorie hands you the tape to use, you take it and walk over to the magazine stand. You sigh to yourself as you look at all of the torn pages but it had to get done. You sit in front of the stand and grab one of the magazines, finding the pages that needed to be fixed. Once you had finished that, you flipped back through it to ensure that you hadn’t missed anything. This pattern continued for quite some time with others. You grab the last magazine that laid on the floor, taping the cover. There wasn’t much of wear and tear on the magazine that you could see, but you triple checked each page to be sure.
A few hours had passed, you’ve finished nearly half of the tasks on your to do list and you see a group of little kids running into the library with their parents. You glance up at the clock that hung on the wall and it read 11:42, meaning that it was nearly time for afternoon reading. Every day the library held story hour at noon and at 3:00, you always read for the afternoon group when you were there and Alorie took over the 3:00 group.
You fold the list and slide it in your pocket, greeting the kids and their parents. You grab the book on the display shelf before walking over to the reading corner. While the children and the parents find their spots on the floor, you sit in the chair in front of the group.
“Alright guys, today’s book is If You Gave a Mouse a Cookie. Who’s read this book? Raise your hand as hiiiigh as you can for me!” You announce, over half of the group raise their tiny hands and you smile.
You begin to read the book, other people join the group a little late but they hadn’t missed much since you were only a few pages in. You enjoyed storytelling, especially to smaller kids because it reminded you of when your childhood was good.
After you read the book, Alorie calls the kids over to the group of tables in the middle of the library to color the pages she made copies of that went along with the book. You tidy up the area that you read at, putting back the chair and the book and picking up any trash that was left over.
“I didn’t know that Harrington’s read.” You hear someone say, startling you as your back was turned towards them.
You turn around and see the person who snuck up on you, it was non other than Eddie Munson. He was your brother’s best friend, only a year and a half older than you. He had been at your house numerous times while your parents were out of town, been through insane situations with Steve, he was someone that you shared friends with although you two weren’t incredibly close yourselves.
“Don’t sneak up on people like that.” You breathe out.
“You Harrington’s are so easy to startle.” Eddie snickers.
“Why are you here? I thought you hated the library.” You question as you continue picking up.
“Well you aren’t wrong but I have to get in my volunteer hours if I plan getting out of that hellhole anytime soon.” He sighs, putting his hands in his pockets.
“I told him that you had the list!” Alorie mentions across the library.
You nod as you understood, he would basically be shadowing you for the day. You knew he wasn’t much for working, especially when it comes to volunteering for something he had absolutely zero interest in. You take the list from your pocket, looking at the things you had left.
“So you waited until the last second to start your volunteering?” You ask.
“Seems like you did too.” He shrugs, looking around the library.
“Not my fault.” You mumble as you continue looking at your list. “You can go ahead and start with dusting.”
You point him to the cleaning tools, he gives you a look before marching his way behind the Alorie’s desk and grabbing the duster. He takes his sweet time to begin the task you assigned him with but you moved on to organizing and rearranging the fiction section of the library.
As you begin to take the books off of the shelf, Alorie leaves the group of kids and walks over to you.
“So I have a few options for you.” She whispers, confusion written across your face. “About your volunteer time.”
“Oh! Okay?”
“So, you can do 10 hours today, I’ll give you the key to lockup early and all you have to do is come in tomorrow for story hour and I’ll say you did your entire 20 hours.” She proposes. “Or you can just continue to come in each day for a few hours.”
It was a good deal. Normally you’d opt in to come each day for your hours and then some but your parents weren’t home so you could easily do the first option. However, you parents knew to check in with Alorie to see if you were actually where you were supposed to be.
“Alorie-”
“It’s spring break and it’s your senior year. You need a break. I won’t tell if you don’t.” She winks, you grin.
“Clean around and lock up like normal?”
“Exactly. Tell him that goes for him too, I’m feeling generous.” She suggests, nodding her head over to Eddie who finally decided to clean.
You thank her and agree on the first option. It wasn’t abnormal for you to lockup after hours once she had went home, you had a trusted bond with one another. You were basically an employee without pay, which you didn’t mind at all, you enjoyed helping her around the library when you could.
You went back to organizing the bookcases, piling each book on the floor so it would be easier to put them in by authors name and the order in which they go in for one’s that were parts of a series. Eddie continued to clean areas with visible dust around the library for quite some time, eventually leading over to the bookcase that you were currently working on.
“Alorie suggested that we stay for 10 hours today and come in for story hour tomorrow and she’ll sign off that we did our 20 hours.” You mention up at him. “Or you can come in each day and actually do your hours.”
“I’ve got a show tonight.” He declines, glancing down at you while he continues to clean. “Besides, I don’t wanna be in here longer than I have to.”
“Suit yourself.” You shrug. “I’m staying until 8.”
That was the end of the conversation, short and simple. It was unusual for him to not talk as much as normal, he constantly talked at your house or during school. Maybe it was because he was in a library and had some manners? You were unsure.
The second reading group came piling through the doors, most being second and third graders who were obnoxiously noisy and never cleaned up after themselves.
“Quiet, we’re in a library!” Alorie whispers to them, placing her index finger on her lips, the kids copying her body movement.
You place the books in their respective places before getting off of your knees. You walk over to the printer and grab the coloring pages for Alorie, putting them in the middle of the tables with crayons for the kids to color after the book had been read like previous.
“So, do kids just come here to listen to a book?” Eddie asks as you walk back over to the bookcase.
“Most days, yes. Then the older kids have a discussion about the book and color. Some days the library does different educational things, especially when it comes to science.” You explain with your back turned away from him. “For the smaller ones, they just come in for a quick story time and color. The older ones are a lot messier though.”
“I can see that. I’d hate to be you tonight.” He snickers. “What’s the next thing on your list?”
“Let me see.” You hum, pulling out the to do list. “I’ve done most of these already.”
Eddie peers over your shoulder, trying to find the one that has the least amount of work.
“She just got a new shipment of paperback books if you want to put those out.” You suggest and he hums. “I’ll show you where they’re at.”
You motion him to follow you, you go in the back room where there were tons of boxes lined up against the wall and stacked on one another. You open the first box and carry it into the main room, Eddie continues to follow you over to the fiction section. You tell him what order they need to be placed in and where to toss the boxes when he’s done.
Some time had passed, the kids from story hour had finished having their discussion on the book Alorie had read to them and colored.
“I need to know what he’s doing.” Alorie mentions as she pulls the library key out of her purse. “Is he staying longer or coming in each day?”
“He’s leaving.” You explain to her, taking the key in your hand.
“Alright, just be sure that he logs his time correctly and be sure that everything’s locked.” She orders. “Bye sweetie.”
“See you tomorrow.” You smile at her while she walks out of the library.
The two of you continue working on putting the books in the correct spot in silence, the only sounds were the books hitting the shelves and the clinking of his chains.
“It’s 4:00, you know.” You mention after silence, glancing up at the clock. “You can leave.”
“Oh, thanks.” Was all he said before immediately heading out of the doors.
Not even a bye, see you later, do you need any help, nothing. You weren’t surprised, it was Eddie you were talking about here, the guy who only thought of himself. That’s why you often butted heads, he only thought of himself and you thought of everyone else other than yourself. You sigh quietly, unsure if you made the right choice since there was a lot more to do.
Better for it to take a while and have it all be done correctly than incorrect you think to yourself.
You walk over to the radio that was beside the computer and turn it on, flipping through the channels until you’re content with a channel to listen to in order to pass the time.
You take a look at your surroundings, trash was still all over the floor and the tables from the kids. It was going to be a long 4 hours with nobody’s help. You begin to pick up all of the trash and throwing it in the trash can, as well as your to do list since you no longer needed it.
You continue picking up and putting books on shelves, the time ticking excruciatingly slow as you began to grow bored with your tasks. You needed some sort of break so you pick out a VHS tape from the movie cart, popping it into the VHS player. You dimmed the lights, not bothering to draw the curtains since the rain made the sky cloudy and dark as you sit comfortably in a beanbag and begin to watch The Breakfast Club to pass some of the time.
“Seems like you really got a lot done.” You hear a voice boom through the library, jolting you awake.
You weren’t aware of what time it was, what day it was, who was in the library, you hadn’t even known that you fell asleep. You quickly jump up and turn around, your eyes meeting Eddie’s, giving you some sort of relief but also terror since you had fallen asleep without locking the door. If Alorie found out, you’d probably be dead.
“Jesus Christ, Eddie!” You shout as you march over to the light switch, turning the lights on. “Stop scaring me!”
“Relax, I just forgot to sign out.” He snickers, walking to the desk and putting the time he had originally left.
8:47 read the analog clock. You were asleep for at least 2 hours and still hadn’t got much done at all.
“Ah shit.” You mumble to yourself, quickly popping the VHS tape in the box and putting it back on the cart. “I can’t believe I fell asleep and forgot to lock the door. I still have a ton left to do.”
“Well you should probably get home before anything, it’s supposed to get worse out.” He sighs.
“Yeah, I’ll get to it.” You ramble as you quickly clean up.
“Alright, well I’ve got a gig to get to. Tell your brother I’m coming over later.” He announces, walking backwards out of the door.
Again, it wasn’t uncommon for him to come over for a few hours after Steve was home from work, but you still had to clean when you got home. You hear the sound of his van peel out of the parking lot, you decided to call it a night. Once everything was put away and clean, you head out of the library and lock the door behind you and began your journey home.
You had originally thought that the rain would stop or die down at least but you were horribly wrong. If anything, the rain and wind picked up harder. You didn’t have a hoodie or an umbrella and Steve couldn’t pick you up. It was miserable.
Many cars passed you, some drenching you in the puddles on the street and nobody stopped. You still had 4 more miles to walk in the rain with no end in sight. What started as a walk end up being a full sprint to get home faster. Your legs were beginning to give up on you, you were soaked through your clothes, your shoes were beginning to give you a blister, you were miserable.
You finally see a building with lights on and a few cars surrounding it, the perfect spot for a break for now. You cautiously get to the front door, pulling it open and allowing yourself to walk inside. It was warm and dry but the smell of cigarettes and alcohol flooded in your nose. You take a look around, not many people were inside but it was loud and chaotic and you don’t recognize a single person.
“Y/N?” You hear from across the room and once again there stood Eddie.
Well, you recognized one person.
“You just couldn’t get enough of me, could you?” He snickers, trotting over towards you.
“Just walking home, needed a break.” You explain. “But by the looks of it, I’m not necessarily the type to be welcomed here so I’m gonna head out-”
“Do you need a ride?” He offers, you reluctantly agree and he nods to you. “I’ll be back, you guys just warm up.”
He holds the door open for you, allowing you to step outside and he follows behind. He unlocks the van and gets in the drivers seat, he opens the passenger door from inside and pushes it for you to grab onto. You climb in the seat, the water from your clothes soaking into the velvet texture of the seats.
“Thank you.” You sigh, closing the door behind you.
“Yeah yeah, don’t think this is going to continue happening.” He brushes off as he turns on the ignition and putting the van into gear. “Thought you had a ride?”
You shrug and recline in the passenger seat. It was one thing for the two of you to be alone in the library, but in the car? Incredibly different.
He drives silently, the rain making it near impossible for him to see out of the windshield. You watch outside of the window as he drives down the road, nearing your home. You finally spot your porch light and he pulls into the driveway, you thank him before running out into the rain. You pull out your house keys and stick it in the lock, turning it and opening your front door.
Once you walk inside, you lock the door behind you and kick off your shoes. You run upstairs and peel off your dripping clothes and dry off with a towel before putting on clean pajamas. You’ve never been happier to be so dry in your life.
When you walk down the stairs and into the kitchen, you clean up the stuff your parents had left behind before leaving for the week and all of the dishes. You were growing irritated with how much trash is yours and how much trash is everyone else’s, they never picked up after themselves.
An hour and a half had passed, it was nearly 12 and there was no sign of Steve coming home anytime soon. You knew how crazy the video store would get on spring break but he had been gone all day, your mind was telling you something was wrong but you didn’t want to think about that. You couldn’t stress yourself out over something that hadn’t even happened yet.
A knock on the door catches you off guard and wipes you away from your deep thought. You walk over to the front door and peek outside from the glass and you see Eddie again for what felt like the hundredth time today.
“He’s not home yet.” You mention, holding back the worry that threatened to come out of your throat.
“No worries.” He shrugs, pushing past you and allowing himself in.
If there was one thing that Steve was strict about, it was about you hanging out with his guy friends one on one. The reason behind that was because of the situation that blossomed between you and Tommy before he and Carol were a thing. You and him were introduced by Steve when he would come over to your house nearly every day, you started off as friends yourselves and then you hooked up. After that, it turned to a shit show. You began dating but he cheated on you every single second he could, he told the entire school that you were a slut, he and Steve got into a huge fight. It was a disaster. So now, you couldn’t really hang out with his friends one on one.
Eddie kicks off his shoes and shimmies his jacket off, hanging it on the coatrack before making himself comfortable in your own home. Just like clockwork, the phone rang.
“Hello?” You answer.
“It’s me, a tree blocked off the road so I won’t be home for a while.” Steve says into the receiver.
“Where are you now?”
“Came back to Family Video. The power got backed up by a generator so I’ll be fine. Make sure you get some candles or a flashlight or something in case the power goes out there.”
“Okay. Do you know when you’ll be home?”
“Not a single clue.” Steve hums into the phone. “Alright, I’ll be home later.”
You put the phone up and Eddie raises an eyebrow.
“It was Steve. A tree fell and blocked off the road because of the storm so he won’t be home until later.” You relay and he gives a quiet ah.
You go upstairs and into your parents’ bedroom closet, raiding it for flashlights and candles. You found a single candle in there so you looked in the top of your own closet and found another, two was better than one in case anything were to happen.
You and Eddie sit on opposite sides of the couch, watching the television in silence. It was incredibly awkward as you both sit and wait for Steve, so you excuse yourself to your bedroom.
1:09 am
You lay on your bed watching your own tv for an hour, the booms of the thunder being impossible to ignore as you try to sleep with the background noise. The tv flickers and it turns off, followed by everything else in the house. You groan to yourself with your eyes closed.
You hear footsteps coming closer to your door and you hear Eddie knock quietly. You toss off your blanket and walk over to the door.
“You brought both of the candles up here.” He chuckles when you open the door.
“Shit, sorry.” You apologize, turning around to grab one of the candles.
“You’re fine. Trying to sleep?”
“Yeah but it’s impossible.” You sigh, handing him a candle. “No sign of Steve?”
“None.”
You move past him and walk down the stairs, he follows behind you the best he could in the dark. The only sense of light either of you truly had was the lightening that flashed through the glass windows.
“Well it seems like we’ll be up for the rest of the night.” You mention.
“We get to hangout outside of the library, how cool.” Eddie mockingly gasps, pulling a quick snicker from you. “And I made you laugh? Geez Harrington, I really think you’re beginning to like me.”
“Oh calm down Munson, you made a joke.” You replied, he was taken aback from the use of his last name. He was used to Steve using it but you? That’s different.
“What should we do to pass time?” He queried.
“I don’t know about you, but I plan on reading.” You advise, lighting the candles.
“Reading? Really? You just spent the entire day at the library.”
“Nothing else to really do.” You shrug.
He pauses for a moment before speaking again.
“You live in your parents’ home, Steve throws tons of parties. You have alcohol, a pool, everything!”
“Not sure if the pool is good for right now considering the circumstances outside.” You chuckle.
“Well you know what I mean.” He laughed. “C’mon, live a little.”
You look at him with a brow raised, his eyes begging for some sort of amusement. You knew you weren’t going to win the non-vocal competition so you gave in regardless. You roll your eyes and went to the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of vodka that was stashed away.
You’ve drank together before. Obviously with a larger group, not by yourselves, but you were comfortable enough. Besides, you were bored yourself.
“Here goes nothing.” You smile as you pour yourselves a shot a piece, clinking the glasses together and throwing the alcohol down your throats. “Jesus it never gets easier.”
You were a few shots in a piece, the awkwardness between the two of you quickly diminished. While trying to figure out what to do to help keep you entertained while drinking, you both agreed on a game to know each other a bit better. You ripped up a piece of paper into tiny bits and each of you wrote down different questions for each other to answer.
You both made up the rules, it was almost like truth or dare. One draws a question and if they refuse to answer, they drink. However, if someone draws a question and answers, the other person has to drink. You weren’t great at making up games on the spot, neither was he, but it was something that you would work on.
“Okay, who draws first?” You ask and he thinks.
“Rock paper scissors?” He suggests and you agree immediately.
He lost and had to draw first, excitement was building up in you at the unknown. He closes his eyes and runs his fingers through the tiny folded pieces of paper in the bowl until he lands on one. He pulls it out and opens his eyes, struggling to make out the words on the page.
“What’s is… your favorite song.” He reads aloud. “Run to the Hills, easily.”
He moves the bowl in front of you after you take a drink. You copy him, closing your eyes and roaming your fingers around the pages until you pull one out.
“What’s your biggest regret? That’s a good one.” You think for a moment. “Don’t really have any. Everything happens for a reason.”
“No, that doesn’t count!” He cackles, calling you out. “You have to answer.”
“That is an answer!” You protest with a grin, he shakes his head. “Ughhhh.”
You take another drink of the alcohol in your cup. It was an answer, just not one that he wanted.
“Who was your first kiss? Really? You have lame questions. But if I have to answer, it was Elaine Dotinson.” He snickers, you roll your eyes and take yet another drink of the beverage.
“What was your longest relationship?” You read, your eyes fixating on his face. “What kind of question?”
“Just two people getting to know each other a little better.” He cheeses. “Unless you want to drink again.”
You roll your eyes.
“4 months.” You mumble, you see him open his mouth to say something. “That is an answer, you didn’t ask who it was. Drink up.”
“Why are you so quiet all the time?” He questions after taking a drink.
“That’s not a question from the pile.”
“Forget the pile for a moment, it’s a genuine question.” He presses. “Do you not like being around me or something?”
You pause for a moment and think. The alcohol was beginning to hit you at the moment and so were the questions.
“It’s not that. We just have different interests and we can’t really spend time together to get to know each other. Like, really get to know each other.” You explained.
“Why can’t we?”
“Because you’re Steve’s best friend. I’m the little sister, we’re off limits to each other.”
“Off limits? Aren’t you an adult?”
“Well yeah b-”
“Who makes those limits? You, him, mommy, daddy?” He interrupts, his voice getting quieter with each word.
You can’t reply. You just sit there observing his face with the flickering candle light, his eyes grown soft yet stern.
“If you actually get to know me, you’ll learn that we have more of the same interests than you might think.”
Before you could attempt to respond, the power comes back on and the phone immediately rings. You both look at each other until you answer the phone.
“Hello?”
“It’s me again. Listen, I’m just going to stay over at Nancy’s for the night since I cant get home. I’ll be home tomorrow, just be sure to lock the doors before you go to sleep.”
“Okay, be safe. I’ll see you.” You say, telling him goodbye and answering the phone.
You turn back around and face Eddie.
“Well, seems like you get Steve’s room tonight. He can’t get home so he’s staying with Nancy for the night.” You voice, sitting back in your spot on the floor. “Shall we continue?”
“We shall.”
3:18 am. The two of you continued your little game, asking questions that weren’t even on the pieces of paper, nearly emptying the vodka bottle and everything was beginning to spin.
You had gotten to know each other pretty well within the past few hours to say the least. He told you about his goals of being a rockstar after graduation, about his parents, his interests. He learned about your relationship between you and your parents, what you enjoyed to do in your free time, why you and Alorie had a close relationship. You developed a friendship.
“Jesus, don’t fall backwards.” You hear Eddie laugh as he follows you up the stairs.
“‘m tryin’!” You whine playfully, slowing crawling up the stairs as the room spins around you.
You were exhausted and the alcohol didn’t help either so you opted in to going to bed. Eddie helped you up the stairs to ensure that you wouldn’t fall and hurt yourself, he held you up as you tripped over your own feet and walked you into your room.
With your bedside lamp being the only light in the room, you managed to stumble your way to your bed and practically face plant into it. You laugh as you continue to be dizzy from the room spinning, Eddie lifts your legs and pushes you even further onto the bed to prevent you from falling out.
“Thank you.” You mumble with a smile on your face as you roll onto your back, looking up at Eddie.
You see his smile, his curly hair partly covering his face as he looks down at you.
Fuck, he’s cute. Even though you were drunk, you could still appreciate beauty when you saw it.
“Anytime.” He smiles, planting a playful kiss to your forehead. “Now I’m going into Steve’s room, night!”
“Night.” You whisper back, watching as he exits out of your bedroom and closes your door.
You couldn’t think he was cute in that sort of way, it was frowned upon. That was your brothers best friend and you two had not really gotten to know each other within the past few hours.
Don’t develop a crush or feelings for him. Don’t develop a crush or feelings for him. Don’t develop a crush or feelings for him you thought to yourself. It was only the alcohol, that’s all it was.
You wake up to the sound of birds chirping outside of your window, the sun beats through your window blinds and into your eyes. You barely open your eyelids, your head pounding from the activities from the night before. Was Eddie still asleep? Was he even there at all?
You glance over at the clock on your nightstand, 10:45 am. You pry yourself out of bed and use the bathroom before quietly sneaking down the hall and into Steve’s room. You peak through the crack in the door and see Eddie asleep on his back, his arm covered his eyes to prevent the sunlight coming in. He was shirtless and your eyes wandered a little too long for comfort so you rip your own attention away.
You walk the opposite way down the hall and down the stairs, each creak from your footsteps sounding like the loudest sound on earth. You stroll into the kitchen Rand grab the ibuprofen from the medicine cabinet, popping a few in your mouth before washing it down with a glass of water. You clean up the mess that you and Eddie had made last night and you toss out the bottle of vodka that you two had finished.
“I can help you out.” You hear Eddie’s raspy voice boom from the top of the staircase.
“Oh it’s fine, I’ve got most of it thrown away.” You mumble quietly, trying not to make your headache any worse.
You steal a look at Eddie and the butterflies in your stomach from the night before were still there. You cursed yourself mentally, telling yourself that it was wrong, but you still found him attractive.
“You okay?” He questions once he finally stood in front of you. Fuck, you forgot to look away from him.
“Y-Yeah! Just this hangover.” You shake off, turning your attention back onto the trash in the living room.
“So I was thinking,” He announces, stretching with a slight yawn. “We can go back for your story hour today and then I can show you Skull Rock like we talked about yesterday.”
You were incredibly confused, not remembering the conversation that transpired between the two of you that he was talking about. You give him a confused look and he snickers.
“Last night you were telling me that you wanted to venture out more, get out of the shell that your parents shoved you in. You didn’t think Skull Rock was a real place and told me you wanted me to take you today.” He reminded you, some of the conversation trickling back into your consciousness.
“Oh, yeah! I totally forgot about that.” You laugh, shaking your head at yourself. “I mean, are you sure?”
“Stop asking me that!” He playfully shouts. “If I wasn’t sure, I wouldn’t have asked you.”
You look up at the clock, it was 11:15. You had 45 minutes to get ready and be at the library. Eddie cleans up around the house while you run into your room. You roam around in your closet for an outfit, deciding on a plain white blouse and torn black jeans. You didn’t bother styling your hair so you tossed it up in a ponytail and quickly ran back downstairs.
“Where’s your shirt?” You ask Eddie as he ties his shoes.
“I’ve got more in the van.” He shrugs, you didn’t say a word but nodded instead.
You make sure you lock the door behind you both and you get into the van. Eddie grabs a shirt from the back and throws it on before starting the van and pulling out into the street.
There were tree limbs scattered everywhere on the road, lawns were flooded from the storm, it was still cold out. You both pull into the library parking lot and he finds an open spot, you walk inside and dry your shoes on the rug before walking in even further. Alorie looks over at you both with a smile.
“Surprised you could make it here!” She beams. “You’re right on time too.”
“I woke up a tad late.” You snicker, pulling up a chair to the reading center.
“Eddie, right?” Alorie questions.
“Yes ma’am, that’s me.” He says, walking up to her.
“Well, Eddie. I know that Ms. Y/N here told you about the deal we made yesterday but you couldn’t stay the whole time, correct?”
“Yes ma’am.” He talks lowly, aware of the readers in the library.
You continue to get everything situated for reading hour, grabbing Chicka Chicka Boom Boom off of the shelf as they continue their conversation.
“Of course if that’s okay with her.” You hear Alorie mention, talking to you.
“Sorry I didn’t hear what you said.” You say.
“I told him that if he helps you with story hour, I’ll stick up for him too saying that he did his full 20 hours.” She suggests, Eddie gives you a small smile.
“I don’t mind!” You agree. “You wanna help with cutting out the letters?”
You hand him a pair of scissors and tracings of different letters of the alphabet that you created the day before, he takes them in his hands and gets busy while the kids come flooding in through the library doors. You and Eddie share a glance, you could tell that the kids were already beginning to get on his nerves.
“Ms. Y/N!” One of the toddlers call out as he runs your direction.
“Hi sweetheart, go find your spot on the floor with your mommy.” You wink to him after he gives you a hug.
Once everyone had settled in, you take your seat in front of the group and begin to read to them. You glance up to make sure Eddie was cutting out all of the letters once you were showing the kids the pictures, he has a slight grin on his face as he listens to you read off of the pages. The butterflies were coming back stronger and harder. You shake it off and begin reading once more when one of the kids asked you to flip the page. You finally finished the book and the kids wanted to go color, they had extremely short attention spans.
“Mr. Munson, you ready for them?” You ask across the library, he raises a brow first.
“Ready Ms. Harrington!” He answers, the kids immediately rush over to him.
Alorie takes over the coloring activity, thanking the both of you and releasing you to enjoy the rest of your spring break. You both walk outside, the smell of fresh rain making you feel refreshed before you jump back into the van.
“Skull rock?” Eddie asks, turning the ignition.
“Sounds like a plan.” You responded.
He drives onto the town road and has his radio blaring, the loud music mixed in with the headache you still had wasn’t your version of fun. He sings along to the lyrics as he continues to drive down winding roads in the middle of nowhere, eventually coming to a complete stop right at the edge of the woods.
“Yeah, this isn’t sketchy at all.” You breathe out, looking deep into the trees but you couldn’t see a thing.
“You wanted an adventure.” He shrugs, hopping out of the van. “Let’s go.”
After a moment of hesitation you follow him into the trees. The perfect ending of a horror movie you think to yourself. You duck underneath branches and move tree limbs out of your way.
“I think I may be regretting this decision, you know.” You announce as you follow behind him. “Do you even know where we’re going?”
He pauses for a moment and looks around at the trees.
“….Yes.” Eddie vocalizes, a slight unsure tone in his voice.
You immediately knew that he was going to get you both lost, however, it was all a journey. You spent for what felt like an hour walking around in circles.
“We’re lost.” You sigh to him and he shakes his head.
“It should be rightttt… here!” He shouts, bringing you to a rock. “See, maybe you should have more trust me in me.”
You look up at the rock, not entirely sure of what you were expecting but it was just a rock. Eddie jumps on top and looks down at you with his feet swinging in the air. He pats an empty spot beside him as an invitation.
You remember the words he told you last night: live a little. With that tiny push, you crawl your way up the rock and place yourself right beside him. You look out into the trees, the windchill sending a shiver down your spine.
The reason he came to the rock often was for the peace like you with the library, it was his escape away from all of the other chaos that Hawkins had to offer. As you both sit there in each other’s company while being completely silent, the rain began again.
“Ah shit.” Eddie hisses as he feels the rain beating down on him.
“Just great.” You huff, looking up at the trees.
Eddie climbs off of the rock and helps you down as well. His original plan was to walk all the way back to the van but the rain got harder, so the both of you sit comfortably with the rock as your source of shelter temporarily.
“Well, cross this off of your bucket list.” He laughs, his back pressed against one side of the rock as he faces you. “You wanna smoke?”
He pulls out a baggie from his jacket with rolled blunts and bits of weed, hanging it in front of you. He saw the sparkle in your eyes when he held the bag in front of you, almost full of curiosity and excitement with a hint of fear.
“I don’t bite and it won’t either.” He promises, his voice quieter.
“You’re a bad influence, you know that?” You joke around to keep the situation lighthearted.
“Just trying to keep us entertained while it quite literally rains on our parade.” He cheeses. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”
You thought for a moment. What’s the worst thing that could happen? Well, probably a lot, but you wanted to slowly creep away from the goody two shoe student that your parents and peers sought you out to be. What better way to explore additional perks and interests than to explore it all?
“I’ve just never smoked before.” You speak up, he laughs at first until he realizes you’re being serious.
“Wait, seriously? Your brother buys shit from me all the time and you’ve never dabbled in it a smidge?” He interrogates, you laugh a light ‘no’.
Without hesitation, Eddie pulls out one of the blunts from the baggie and observes it, making sure it’s rolled tight and perfect for your first ever smoke session. He gives you a look to make sure that you wanted to and once he had your approval, he sticks it between his lips and lights the end. He drags in a deep breath, holding it in for a few moments before exhaling. The smell alone was horrid but you hoped that it would be worth it.
“So you’re going to hold it like this,” He teachers, wrapping your fingers around it snugly. “Bring it up to your lips and inhale. You’ve smoked a normal cigarette, right?”
“Mhm.”
“Inhale just like that, just be sure you hold it in for as long as you can stand it. Then you just exhale and enjoy it.” His voice was rich as he instructed you.
You did exactly what he told you. You pull the blunt to your lips, sucking in a deep breath as your lungs ache once the smoke hit them. You hold for a few seconds and exhale, coughing obnoxiously as the smoke is released.
“You alright?” Eddie checks once your coughing had died down, you give him a thumbs up while your eyes water. “Yeah first time’s rough but it gets easier.”
“How will I know I’m high?” You ask him, handing the blunt back.
“Oh you’ll know, trust me.” He winks, inhaling the smoke.
This pattern of back and forth goes on for a while, the rain not giving a hint of ending in sight. You felt good, everything felt light and relaxing, you’ve never felt this calm. He wasn’t wrong, you knew the moment it hit you that you were high.
Less than 24 hours ago you were doing volunteer work with him with hardly any words being shared between the both of you. Less than 12 hours ago you were getting to know each other better and becoming friends. Now you’re in the middle of the woods with him getting high for the first time.
“This is nice.” You sigh to yourself, relaxing against the ground as you bask in your high.
“Feeling it, aren’t ya?”
“Oh yeah.” You snicker. “To think that we barely knew a thing about each other yesterday and now we’re here.”
“I know, crazy how shit like that works.” Eddie chuckles. “You’re nothing like your brother.”
“Is that a good or bad thing?”
“Good I believe.” He mentions casually, playing with a rock in his hand. “It was easier getting to know you. Not much of a total asshole, humble for the most part, cute.”
He just leaves it at the last word, cute. You couldn’t tell if it was the high that made you blush or his words but you couldn’t shake the butterflies that had lingered all day. You laugh at his compliments in an endearing way, burying your face in your hands.
“So what are your plans for the rest of spring break?”
“Not too sure.” You sigh with a shrug. “Yourself?”
“Well I’m glad you ask!” He chirps, sitting up straight. “I’ll be doing different adventures with you.”
“Eddie-”
“Ah ah, live a little, remember?” He reminds you. “I won’t do anything that will hurt you. I promise.”
You’ve heard that same promise before from Tommy but that wasn’t exactly true. There were multiple reasons not to trust anyone, your parents being the first people to break your trust long ago and everyone else seemed followed along. When you begin to live, you learn to trust.
“Fine.” You agree after a few moments of silence between the two of you. “What do you have in mind?”
“We’ll figure it out once we figure it out.” He beams, gently slapping your knee. “But for now, what do you think about getting back to the van? I don’t think the rain plans on stopping and it’s only 3:26, we’ve got more to do.”
You both crawl out from under the rock and run through the trees, branches slapping against you, leaving wet marks on your shirt and jeans while the rain falls on your head. You laugh when Eddie trips over his own feet and lands on his stomach so he grabs your ankle in revenge, making you fall right beside him. You make an audible oof as your stomach hits hits the muddy ground, mud splashing all over your torso and your face.
“Who’s laughing now?” Eddie teased and pokes his tongue out.
“Oh shut up.” You laugh loudly, grabbing Eddie’s hand as he assists you to your feet.
You brush yourself off the best you can before you both continue your walk through the trees. You find the clearing and spot his van, making a run for it and hopping in the passenger’s seat.
Eddie begins to drive down the road, coming up with new things that you haven’t done. He pulls into a gravel road and the familiarity comes around, you were in the trailer park that Max lives in. You were silently praying that she wouldn’t be home so no red flags were potentially raised about you being with Eddie.
He pulls into a driveway and parks beside a black truck, he turns off the ignition and opens the driver door. You glance over at Max’s trailer and see no trace of her which gave you the go ahead of following him inside.
The both of you quietly walk through the door, you see an older man sleeping on the recliner that sat in front of the flickering television. Eddie holds his index finger in front of his mouth as a sign to not speak, you oblige and follow him down the hall into the bedroom.
“This is mi casa.” He announces quietly once the door was shut. “That was also my Uncle Wayne asleep in there.”
You connected some of the dots about what he told you about himself last night. Wayne had been granted custody of Eddie before he was 5, his mom had passed away and his dad was constantly running from the cops or was in jail. Since it wasn’t expected that Wayne get custody, he had to give up the only room in the trailer and gave it to Eddie and he would resort to the recliner.
“You have a lot of stuff.” You point out as you take a look around his room.
“Yeah, I tried cleaning up but it got cluttered because of my collections.” He smiles almost nervously.
His room was filled with things he was passionate about, majority of it being music and D&D things. He had posters covering nearly every part of the walls, clothes piled up on a desk and in the closets. It wasn’t organized but you enjoyed the chaos. He throws you a shirt and you catch it in your hands.
“Figured you wouldn’t want to be in muddy clothes all day, you can wear that for now.”
“You’re very considerate.” You smile at him.
He grins at your statement and rips his dirty shirt over his head, tossing it to the side and throws on a clean one. He walks into the bathroom to allow you to change in privacy. You pull your shirt over your head and immediately cover yourself back up with his shirt, it smelled like laundry detergent mixed with cigarettes and weed. You’ve grown used to the smell of him over the past day and it was almost comforting.
“You still have dirt on your face.” Eddie calls attention to your face, his finger brushes against your nose.
You try to wipe it off without looking, missing the spots of dried mud entirely. He tries to guide you but you continued to miss it, he held in his laugh at your failed attempts.
“Here, let me get it.” He mutters, taking matters into his own hands.
You look up at him and agree to his help, his rough fingertips scrape the side of your face. His eyes flicker from the dirt on your cheek and nose to your eyes, your breath catches in your throat once you lock eyes.
Suddenly he was even prettier than before. His big brown eyes glimmered in the sunlight that peaked through his window, his lips glistened from the chapstick he put on in the bathroom, it suddenly felt like you were floating. His finger remained on your face, not moving but just staying there as the two of you take in each other’s features. No words were being spoken, no movements, just the two of you taking in one another.
“Eddie, I’m heading out.” You hear from the living room, knocking you both back into reality.
“Oh, uh alright!” Eddie shouts back, glancing back at the door and removing his hand. “I may be out when you get home!”
“That’s alright, just be safe and don’t get arrested again.” Wayne bellows.
You hear his footsteps and the door slam shut behind him. The roar of the engine rattled the windows and you hear it get quieter and quieter the further he got down the gravel road. You were taking in Eddie’s space, it was different being the guest in his home but you couldn’t say that you didn’t enjoy being somewhere new.
“Don’t get attested again?” You draw attention to Wayne’s statement. “You seemed to have missed that chapter.”
“Oh it was nothing.” He waves off. “Just got caught doing some graffiti when I was 17, no charges were actually filed.”
He lays back on his bed and sighs.
“You can sit, I don’t bite unless you ask me to.” He winks to you, moving over so you had some room.
Oh god. Is he flirting? It definitely feels like he’s flirting with you. Maybe you were overthinking it and he was being friendly? It was hard to tell with him.
“Is your high wearing off?” He blurts out a few minutes after you got comfortable in your new spot.
“A little.” You replied, sitting criss cross.
With that answer, he pulls out a baggie of weed from his bedside table and a box of wraps. You weren’t ignorant to weed, you just hadn’t tried it until earlier but you knew what things were. You watch as he grabs the rolling tray and sits it on the bed beside him. He grabs bits of the drug in his fingers and places it in the paper. You watch as he rolled the fresh blunt, licking the paper gently to ensure that none would fall out.
He plants a kiss on it like it was the most delicate thing in existence before placing it between his lips. He lights the end of it and inhales deeply, lifting his head to the ceiling as his blows it out, his neck was on full display for you. His hand reaches out, extending the blunt to you. You didn’t hesitate for a moment, you immediately grab it and pull it up to your face, dragging in a deep breath.
It was true when he said that it’ll get easier the more you do it, it didn’t sting your lungs nearly enough like it did a few hours before. You feel his eyes on you whilst you breathe out and hand him the blunt back. You continue passing it back and forth to one another, that relaxed feeling creeping back to you. You eventually lie down on your stomach facing Eddie, making it even easier to pass it between you two.
“My mouth is so dry.” You complain with a laugh. “But this is nice. I like hanging out with you.”
“I enjoy hanging out with you too.” He chuckles, tilting his head to the side after the blunt was finished. “You look good in my shirt.”
You bite your lip to hide your smile at the now obvious flirting. While you try to hide your appreciation for the compliment, you look around his room and spot an eyeliner pencil.
“Can I do your eyeliner?” You question, suddenly changing the subject.
“Go for it.” He approved.
You get off of the bed and waltz over to his desk, you grab the eyeliner in your hands and walk back towards him. You wiggle your eyebrows in a joking manner while he continues to lay on his back.
“I didn’t really think about this.” You mutter, trying to figure out a good spot for you to sit as you do his makeup.
“Let me sit up a little.” Eddie announced, scooting himself to a halfway seated position.
You sit in front of him and bring his face towards you in your hands, it still wasn’t easy to do his eyeliner without poking him in the eye. He noticed your difficulty and grabbed your legs, scooting you into his lap a little bit.
“This okay?” He verifies.
“Much better.” You smile sweetly, grasping his face in your palm again to guide him to you.
You order him to look up and he does just that as you cautiously place the eyeliner on his waterline. His hands sit comfortably on your back to hold himself up and prevent you from moving suddenly. You focus on the makeup not getting in his eye and he seemed to be focused on something else.
“Your lips are chapped.”
His statement immediately makes you lick your lips to give them some sort of moisture but it was no use.
“Yeah well I have cottonmouth and it isn’t helping.” You mumble, continuing to focus on his face.
“You need chapstick?”
“You gonna stop talking so I can finish this?” You remark lightly, looking at his face and seeing amusement written all over it.
“No, I think you need chapstick.”
His eyes flicker up to yours and to your lips, he quickly closes the gap between the two of you. You feel a sense of shock at first when you feel his lips pressed against yours, unsure if it was actually happening or if you had gotten too high and you were making it up.
He pulled away, his pupil blown once you make eye contact with him again. The feelings that you had felt all day, all of the butterflies, anxiety, excitement had hit you all at once again.
“I-I’m sorry.” He breathes after a moment, studying the expression on your face. “I didn’t know-”
You interrupt him by stealing another kiss once the reality of him kissing you first had set in. The eyeliner rolled out of your touch as you place your hands firmly on his face with your lips pressed against his. It felt right, almost like you’ve done this hundreds if not thousands of times before.
Truthfully, you had the biggest crush on him when he began to come around a year ago, though you pushed it away the best you could. You never stayed around him long enough or talked to him because you didn’t want him to find out about your attraction, but now it made you wonder how long he felt the way whatever this was.
“Whoa.” Eddie exhaled once you pulled away slowly.
“Um, yeah. Whoa.” You mimic, sliding out of his lap.
Your faces were a bright shade of red and you couldn’t contain your grins. You were able to clearly see your eyeliner job on him and he looked even that much cuter.
“So uh,” He clears his throat. “What adventure you wanna go on now?”
“What time is it?” You ask, he looks down at the watch on his wrist.
“8:30” He answered.
“The next adventure would probably be getting home before anyone suspects anything if Steve’s home.”
You saw the slight disappointment in his face but he wouldn’t make you stay longer. You both got off of his bed and walk into the living room, putting on your shoes and lacing them so you could get out of the door.
You wait for him in the passenger’s seat of the van, not sure of what was taking him so long to get outside. You glance in the rearview mirror and see Max and Lucas talking by the picnic tables, you curse yourself under your breath and you finally spot Eddie coming. He climbs in the driver’s seat, you sink farther in the passenger’s seat as he drives in hopes that they wouldn’t catch you.
“Small change of plans in our adventure.” Eddie says. “Forgot my dice at the school, I have to get them before someone throws them away.”
“Nobody’s there.”
“Well, we’ll sneak in.” He suggests nonchalantly. “Unless you’re scared.”
“I’m not scared!” You argue with a fake offended tone which made him laugh. “You know where they’re at?”
“Yep and I know exactly how we’ll get in.”
You didn’t ask any questions nor did you expect any answers for the time being, you were in for whatever he had planned. He drives through town, telling you different stories about the rise and falls of Hellfire and how easy it was to manipulate the other characters just by dice. Eventually he pulls into the school’s parking lot and drives to the back, parking as close as he could possibly get to a window.
“You got it?” He whispers below you as you crawl inside of a window.
“I think my jeans are stuck!” You whisper shout from above him, unable to move any further than where you were.
Your belt loop got snagged on a hook and you didn’t want to rip your new jeans but you had to get in and out of there.
“Push me!” You order, your feet kicking a tad in the air.
You feel his hands on your legs as he pushes you inside, you topple on the floor, letting out a silent ‘ow’ when you hit your head on the hard tile. You brush yourself off and move out of the way as Eddie jumps up, clinging onto the windowsill and pulling himself inside. He wastes no time to find where he had left the dice.
“It’s so dark.” Your voice echos down the hall, hardly being able to see Eddie’s own shadow.
“Just follow me.” He orders.
You keep quiet and follow him to the best of your abilities, finally reaching a classroom door. He opens the door quietly and walks inside, inching the corner of the room to a closet. You hear him pick the lock of the closet and the creak of the door opening was practically deafening. He walks inside and flips on a light, revealing where he held Hellfire. He looks around everywhere for the dice and they were nowhere to be found. You weren’t aware that he held Hellfire in the drama class’s prop closet until that moment, but it would explain a lot.
“Aha!” You hear him shout in a celebratory tone.
“Who’s there?” You hear another voice shout from down the hall.
You and Eddie immediately look at each other with a moment of panic until he mouths run. You both break out into a sprint, he grabs your hand so you don’t fall behind. The footsteps of the other person could be heard following you. You find the way you came in and jump out of the window, your ankles burning as you land on the hard ground and Eddie follows shortly after.
“Go, go, go!” He shouts to you, making you run for the van.
Once you were in the van and the coast was clear after he’d driven off, you burst out into a fit of laughter. The adrenaline from escaping and your high runs through your veins and he smiles when he sees that you had a blast. You were finally to your last adventure of the night, home.
He drives into the quiet section of your neighborhood and finally pulls into your driveway. Surprisingly Steve hadn’t made it home yet, but he usually came home super late when your parents were out of town. You both sit in the driveway for a few minutes in silence.
“Thank you for everything today.” You smile. “Do you wanna come in for a bit?”
He didn’t answer verbally, instead he turned off the ignition and pulled the keys out. You took it as a yes so you jump out and he followed you inside. There was no sign of Steve even stopping by the house, everything was exactly how you and Eddie left it that morning.
You go upstairs with Eddie behind you and you allow him inside of your room, closing the door to give him access to your entire space. You turn on your lamp and turn off the ceiling light, giving your eyes a moment to relax from the soft light. You lay on your bed with your face towards the ceiling, he copies you and lays the exact same way.
“I’ve gotta say, you didn’t disappoint me today, Harrington.” He says quietly.
“You didn’t disappoint me either, Munson.” You acknowledged, turning your head to face him.
He smiles and inches his face closer to yours, almost testing the waters like he hadn’t kissed you an hour prior.
“Do I need more chapstick?” You tease, he smirked.
“I believe so.”
The gap was finally closed again. He tasted like a mixture of weed and cigarettes, it was quickly becoming your favorite taste. His lips were soft against yours, your eyes flutter closed as the kiss lingers. What started off as a few small pecks transitioned to something more.
His lips move swiftly against yours, almost cautious as if he was worried that you might back away. You put more pressure against his lips, which signaled him that you weren’t backing away. He experiments a little bit by sliding his tongue against your bottom lip, you open your mouth to allow access to him.
His tongue slides into your mouth, clashing against yours without a fight. You couldn’t get enough of him, he sits up and hovers over you, not moving his lips from yours. You spread your legs to allow him to sit comfortably as he continues to kiss you. Your fingers tangle in his hair, tugging on it slightly which made a slight groan come out of his throat. You began to get wet just from the sound he made, the kiss growing needier from both parties.
You feel his hard cock press against you from his jeans while your tongues intertwine. His hand creeps up your shirt and lands on the soft fabric of your bra, squeezing your breast. His like trail from your lips to your cheek and down your neck, peppering small kisses to your exposed skin. You sigh in pleasure when he sucks the tender sweet spot right below your ear, leaving behind a purple bruise that would be hard to hide.
He pulls away from your body for a moment, tossing his shirt to the side of your room before helping you do the same. You reveal your black bra but you quickly reach behind you, unclasping it and throwing it to the rest of the clothes.
“Jesus.” Eddie groans deeply as he sees your tits for the first time, it was so much better than he had imagined.
He pushed you back down, making you bounce a little on your back as you grin. He looked at you with so much need and desire it was unbearable. He slides out of this jeans and quickly begins to work on the button and zipper of your jeans, leaving you in your red laced underwear. Your eyes fixate on his hard cock through his underwear, your mouth practically watering, but you knew you didn’t have much time.
“Steve should be on his way, yeah?” Eddie breathes from above you, you nod. “Better make this quick.”
He lifts your hips a little and he slides your underwear down your legs, sucking in a deep breath when he sees your wet cunt glistening in the light.
“Fuuuuck.” He draws out, “So pretty for me.”
His face hovers over your cunt, observing the slick you had collected within the past few minutes. He kisses your thighs, going up further and diving straight into your cunt. His tongue licks a broad stripe from your opening to your clit, you let out a soft mewl at the sensitive sensation.
Part of your brain was fighting with you, saying it was wrong because you hadn’t really known him for long and he was your brothers best friend, but the other side knew that it felt too good to bother fighting.
“Oh shit.” You gasp quietly while his tongue moves circles around your clit.
You swore he was some sort of professional, maybe even a pornstar, just by the way his tongue danced on your cunt. You hadn’t expected him to know exactly what he was doing because of the track record he has for relationships. Maybe he hooked up with girls after his shows at this hideout? Maybe girls from school? You didn’t care enough in the moment to figure it out, you’d ask him at a later time.
His lips latch around your sensitive bud and he sucks gently, releasing a moan from your throat and your fingers cling to his hair. You give an experimental tug on his hair, a guttural groan comes out of his mouth and it buzzes against your clit. You let out a moan at the extra sensation, his eyes meet you as his mouth keeps its place on your clot.
“You taste so good, baby.” He compliments after he pulls away. “Would love to taste you more but it’s only a matter of time until Steve gets home.”
He crawls back up to you and pecks your lips again, your fingernails rake against his torso. You reach to the side and open the bedside drawer, pulling out a book and Eddie immediately looks at you confused. You open it a little halfway through and pull out a condom, throwing the book to the side as you hand it to him.
“I honest to god had no clue where this was going.” He snickers, grabbing the condom.
“Well that was always my hiding spot for shit that I didn’t want my parents to find.” You explained with a grin.
He smirks before sliding out of his boxers, his cock on complete display for you to see and you were aching for him even more. He opens the foil with his teeth, spitting it into the floor and rolling the rubber onto his cock.
He slots himself between your legs, grabbing the base of his cock and swiping it between your folds, teasing you with a smug look on his face.
“Don’t be mean.” You whine with a pout, he mocks your pout.
“Aw am I being mean sweetheart?” He mocks. “If you ask me, I think I’m being pretty nice.”
“This isn’t called being nice.” You shake your head, he smirks.
“Oh I’m not being nice?” Eddie tuts, pushing his mushroom tip into you.
You whimper as he begins to stretch you out already.
“From the sounds you’re making, it seems like I’m being pretty damn nice if you ask me.” He chuckles, pulling his tip out of you.
“Please.” You plead, a spark in his eye was very noticeable when he hears you beg for him.
“Please what?” He pushes, a smirk spread widely across his face. “Oh, you want me to fuck you, hm?”
You couldn’t speak, you just nodded.
“I don’t know sweet girl, the thought of me fucking you senseless while your brother’s home is enticing.” He hums. “Maybe make you wait a little longer, have him wondering where we’re at while I’m deep inside you.”
His tip is pushed into you again, another whence being pulled from you body. It was absolute torture to wait like this but you were eating it up. You just needed him right then and there.
“I’m feeling quite generous, though.” His voice is deep and low as he pushes himself into you even further.
He sinks into you lower and lower until he finally reaches the hilt. It was a mixture of pain and pleasure as he stretched you out, he felt way bigger than he looked which was saying something because he was massive. He draws his hips back before slamming into you, causing you to cry out. He looks down at you to see if you were fine, you flash him a grin to let him know that you were perfectly okay.
His thrusts were slow and deep at first but once you had adjusted to his size, he picked up the pace. His hands grip onto your hips, his fingertips leaving behind bruises while his cock repeatedly hits your cervix.
“Fucking Christ baby, you’re doing so well for me.” He grits, watching himself slide in and out of you.
His hair and body is drenched in sweat as he fucks into you deeply, your moans blend with the sounds of Eddie’s grunts and your body crashing against his. Your fingernails sinks into his back, he pulls you even closer and lifts your legs slightly for even deep penetration. He locks eyes with you, your mouth parts slightly and your eyebrows furrow as his dick continues its hard pattern in and out of your cunt.
“Oh g-god Eddie, right there!” You cry out, your legs already beginning to shake while his thrusts continue.
His grunts grow louder and louder with each thrust, his eyes never leave yours unless it’s to look at himself gliding in and out of you. You ramble his name over and over like it was your personal prayer to god, you weren’t able to get enough of him. You were beyond addicted to him at this point like he was your lifeline. His thrusts begin to falter as he gets closer to his climax, you would be lying if you said you weren’t nearly there yourself.
“You look so beautiful being split open from my cock like this.” He growls, his harsh grip tightening on your hips. “You like when I fuck you like this? Hm?”
“Y-yes!” You squeal, your climax quickly approaching.
“Wonder what your brother would do if he found out.” He snickers, his balls repeatedly slapping your skin while his cock is buried deep within you. “What would Steve think about his little sister being fucked senseless by me?”
You couldn’t answer, no words were able to escape your lips, only the sound of your moans could be heard. He pushed for an answer, his hips snapping into you harshly only made it harder to answer.
“Oh my god Eddie!” You scream as you clench around him.
Your eyes roll to the back of your skull when your climax finally hits you. Your toes curl as your back arches off of the bed, a wave of pleasure floods through your body and you see sparks. Your legs shake uncontrollably while he continues to fuck into you, his climax quickly building up at the sight and feeling of your orgasm crashing through you. He tried to hold it back but he couldn’t, his hips slowly rut into you while he works his way through his own orgasm, hot white ropes of cum filling the rubber he still had inside of you.
He cautiously pulled out of you whilst you were both still excruciatingly sensitive because of your orgasms. He rolls the condom off and tosses it in the trash can that say in the corner of your room and cleans himself off before slowly putting his items of clothing on. Once you caught your breath and your body relaxed you put on a fresh pair of underwear and pajamas. He flashes you a grin and presses a kiss to your lips, you kiss him back immediately with a smile.
Just like clockwork you hear the front door opening and the sound of shoes walking into the living room. You and Eddie share a quick glance before trying to come up with something on the spot as an excuse for why he was in your room since you knew whoever it was had seen his van in the driveway.
“Quick, had me that screwdriver.” He points at the edge of your closet while he kneels in front of your bedroom door.
You do exactly what he tells you, handing him the screwdriver but unsure as to what he was doing. You fix you hair to make it lay over your shoulders to conceal the hickey he had left on your neck. You hear footsteps and walking up the stairs and come to a complete stop in front of your door.
“That should work better for you, don’t have to worry about it falling off of the hinges.” Eddie grunts, tightening a screw on your door.
“Thanks, I have no clue what happened.” You play along.
Eddie gets off of the floor and opens the door, revealing Steve standing in the hallway looking confused and almost concerned. You smile to Steve and thank Eddie for “fixing” your door.
“Everything okay?” Your brother questions, standing there with a hand on his hip.
“Yeah, my door just got too loose and fell I suppose.” You shrug.
“Uh, yeah. Alright then.” Steve states, his eyebrows still furrowed and he shakes his head. “Still plan on helping out during the party?”
“Do I ever say no?” Eddie chuckles. “See you around, Harrington.”
You nod graciously and they walk down the stairs, Eddie glances behind him for a moment and gives you a wink, the butterflies coming back again. You close your door and the day finally sinks in.
What have you gotten yourself into?
394 notes · View notes
savaralyn2 · 3 months
Note
I've seen people joke about Ryoko Kui putting the series on hold for a month when Baldur's Gate 3 officially released - is that actually true? I'm sure it was on her radar, BG3 dropped at the beginning of August, and the one month hiatus was in July, with the usual chapter following in August. Do you know if there's any truth to the joke or are folks just having fun?
No, that's not true. Harta, the magazine that dungeon meshi chapters are initially published in every month, usually goes on two scheduled breaks every year. In 2023, one of those breaks was in July.
So Kui may have indeed gotten into BG3 (I know she's uploaded at least one sketch about it on her blog), but it didn't actually affect her work, that was just part of Harta's regular scheduling process.
187 notes · View notes
natsessence · 2 years
Text
The New Maid
pairing | dom!natasha x sub!reader
summary | After being hired as a maid under Natasha Romanoff's care, your suspicions on her intentions with you soon grow weary. With her request to wear a revealing uniform and her elongated stares, it's not long before you can submit to more than just your attraction for her.
warnings (18+) | smut, dom/sub, dark-ish nat, praise kink, possessiveness, rough sex, fingering, mommy kink, bondage, dirty talk, degradation, spitting, slight spanking, multiple orgasms, oral sex, vibrators, mommy nat (drooling), short skirts, fucks you over her desk tbh
a/n | hi this has already been published on other platforms for a whileeeee but i’m trying to cross upload my work on here cause i wanna write more. this was also my first time writing anything ever (let alone smut) so enjoy :)) any feedback is appreciated!!
word count | 6.3k
warning! (18+): language and sexual content. please refer to tags before reading.
Tumblr media
Working under Natasha Romanoff had been a dream. From the very generous pay to the no expenses of living in her lavish mansion, it baffles you how lucky you were to get this job. It started off as a one-time summer thing, a side hustle to earn some extra money before your sophomore year as a college student. But once you learned how well a live-in maid gets paid, you realized there were far too many benefits of pursuing the job for more than just one summer.
Training as a maid was quite simple as well, the owners would usually have articulated plans or certain schedules you follow throughout the day. However, Natasha Romanoff wasn't as easy, she had you by her side practically every second of the day. You're not exactly sure what her job specifically entails, but it must pay well for her to be able to afford such an enormous house. You're glad for the digital map of structure and layout otherwise you'd get lost just looking for the bathroom, which still occurred quite a lot. You do, however, know it has something to do with Stark Industries. When you've had to deliver messages or meals to her grand office, you've overhead her conversations with Tony Stark. Although, it sounded much more like she was talking to a friend than a business call, it was none of your business. She seemed to be a very powerful woman, and you'd hate to cross her, but so far, she's been nothing but more than accommodating.
It's only been a week, but you've wondered if she has other employees. So far, the only people you've seen, besides Natasha, is the chef, pool boy, gardener, and the silent security guards at every gate. You've yet to meet other maids or butlers for that matter but realized Natasha Romanoff is just one person. It'd be quite excessive to have multiple live-in maids. It just felt quite lonely to think about Natasha all alone in such a huge place.
Aside from the very small and revealing, cliche maid outfit she requested you wear the night you arrived, you figured Natasha was just a traditional woman and had no complaints. Especially none with spending almost every hour attending to Natasha Romanoff's needs. You couldn't deny the attraction you felt for her, but in all honesty, who could? She was an undeniably gorgeous woman. The long touches and stares she sent you at times didn't help either. You'd feel her eyes burn into you as you served drinks or prepared her dinner. The outfit she provided failed to hide the blush in your cheeks at every pet name she threw your way. Especially when she would say goodbye and leave a longing touch on your arm or stare at you too long. Every time you were with her things became much harder to focus on. But this job was the highest-paying gig you’ve ever had, so you’d have to suck it up and ignore the little (huge) crush until the end of summer.
Waking up and eyeing the maid uniform hung above your closet, you prepared yourself for your day. You'd assumed the outfit had probably been tailored for the last maid, who may have been (extremely) smaller than you. But with you having to do work around such a colossal property, it required you to move around a lot. So, when you had to practically walk everywhere and bend over every surface to reach the things, you would feel the rise in your skirt and always missed the smirk that rose to Natasha's lips when she was around you.
For the schedule today, you would help her prepare for an on-call business transaction. She asked you have her breakfast served in bed and prepare her outfit and office for her before noon. Simple enough. So, with a final brush of an invisible wrinkle on your top, you hurried along to serve Natasha her meal.
Knocking on the door three times with a tray of caviar buttered croissants, lobster scrambled eggs, and cinnamon brioche french toast in your arms, you opened it to find Natasha plaid in nothing but a black silk robe. Your eyes couldn't help but fall to her chest, where it was barely covered by the thin fabric, finding her cleavage peeking out tauntingly. Her red locks were barely tussled, you'd never be able to guess she had just gotten out of bed.
"Good morning, Ms. Romanoff. Here's your breakfast." You said as you placed the tray onto her bed and above her, your face dangerously close to her chest before you straightened yourself up by her beside.
"Mmm, good morning, my dear. Did you sleep well?" She asked, a smile playing at her lips at the sight of you as she faintly rubbed her eyes.
With your hands rested behind your back and a thump in your heartbeat at the use of the pet name, you replied, "Yes, splendidly, miss, thank you. Is breakfast to your liking?"
She groaned at the use of your "Miss and Missus," the first day you arrived she insisted that you use her first name; Natasha. She definitely wished for the use of a different name on your lips, but she couldn’t scare you away just yet. Using her forename never felt polite to you, and you're not sure you would be able handle letting her name roll off your tongue that easily when you could barely manage being in her presence. She gave up soon, but it's not like she didn't enjoy hearing you call her Ms. Romanoff, either. The sound of her name on your lips made her stomach twist with desire.
Your outfit was no mistake, either, she had of course received your profile and knew your measurements, she just couldn't resist seeing you in such a thing. Natasha was a woman that paid attention to detail. Usually, she'd never even have a live-in maid, or a maid at all for that matter. She'd probably just get Tony to whip up some robot to do all her biddings, but she wasn't that shallow. After Steve had teased her about living all alone in such a large home, she figured she just needed a little more human interaction in her home life. Eventually she found a housekeeping service. Intentionally, she had only wanted to find a maid or butler that would come in during the weekdays, but after crossing your profile and seeing your picture. She couldn't help herself. She found you irresistible and absolutely perfect. Even more when you met her, and she fell in love with your innocence, shy blushes, polite manner, and cute smiles. She felt like a teen all over again. 
She knew she had to have you.
She raised her glare to find you obediently awaiting her answer. She smiled to herself, "Yes, sweetheart, it's divine. Tell Jeffrey I send my compliments. Have you eaten, my love?"
The painted pink on your checks only grew stronger with her constant use of pet names. Natasha knew this just as well, she loved seeing you blush and even more when she knew she was the reason why. "No, not yet miss. I was planning on picking up something on the way to prepare your office."
"That's nonsense, Jeffrey prepares an amazing breakfast every day. You've been here a week, honey, make yourself comfortable. It's practically your home, too." Your head dropped slightly, nodding at her reprimanding request.
“Yes, Ms. Romanoff,” before you could make your exit, she grabbed your wrist and tugged you into her bed, catching you in surprise. "While you're here, you might as well eat, darling."
It sounded more like a command, but you wouldn't deny her either way, knowing you were always hopelessly compliant to her demands. That's what made Natasha so set on you, not only were you a wonderful sight to see, your obedience is what made her sure you were perfect for her, even after only a week. No one had this effect on her as much as you did. She planned to make you hers, she just wasn’t sure how much longer she could wait.
You could barely move a muscle on the large black silk comforter of her bed, awaiting her next command and watching as her hands moved to slice the French toast and raise the fork to your mouth. You eyed her, hesitantly opening your mouth as she fed you.
"Good girl," she hummed satisfied, her eyes following your every move.
You nearly choked at her words, feeling your heart beat harder against your chest and heat rise to your cheeks. After a few more bites and her gazes in between, your heart paced even faster at her next move. "Stay still, honey, you have something righttt there." She said as her hand rose to grasp your face, her thumb moving to your bottom lip as she wiped away the powdered sugar that stained your mouth. She moved the same thumb to her own mouth and licked the residue slowly, glossy green eyes never leaving yours. You couldn't do much but stare starstruck at her lips in front of your face, agonizingly close as she licked them teasingly. The action alone made your stomach shudder sensually and pool heat to your center.
You composed yourself and mumbled a timid, "thank you." Before rising to your feet and picking up her tray to place onto a table to distract yourself from the wetness growing between your legs. "I'll get started on your outfit. Does it need pressing?" You said as you returned to her side. Natasha let out a small chuckle at her effect on you.
"Yes, I believe so. It's hung in my closet; you can do whatever you see fit. I trust your eye for clothing." She acknowledged with wink as she moved to grab her reading glasses and a book from her nightstand.
You nodded, moving to her walk-in closet and setting your eyes on her tailored, black suit. You planned on pressing it in the station of the laundry room before Natasha called out to you just as you were leaving, suit in hand.
"Do it in here, I want to see you." She said, signaling you to use the table that stood within her large bedroom. You couldn't help the thoughts running in your head, but only one remaining prominent; she wants to see you.
You swallowed a gulp and nodded compliantly, turning your back to her as you began pressing her suit. Natasha smiled to herself, enjoying the view in front of her as she occupied her mind of everything she would do once she got her hands on you. It was hard enough restraining herself from pouncing on you any second of the day, but with each movement your skirt rose ever so slightly, giving Natasha a perfect view of your white lace panties and having her wishing she could rip them right off. She was practically drooling at the sight.
Once you were done, you moved to hang it in her closet where it laid before. You returned to her side before clasping your hands behind your back and asking, "I've finished, Ms. Romanoff. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
She took a moment to drink you in, standing obediently in front of you in your tight outfit. Your breasts pushing against the fabric and legs covered in white stockings. Before eyeing you up and down, she hummed to herself, "There are lots of things you can do for me, sweetheart. But for now, everything is fine, thank you."
Your eyes widened slightly at her remark, were you hearing things? You weren't sure how much longer you would be able to handle this woman and her seductive teasing. But you blamed it all on your attraction for her, declaring you were just making up things in your head. You nodded and made your way to her grand door, feeling eyes glued to your body as you made your exit.
At noon exactly, you had already finished preparing Natasha's office for her business meeting, you were tidying her bookshelf when you heard the door open. Twisting your head to find her in the same suit you had pressed earlier today. It hugged her body perfectly, but you didn't have time to admire any further as you clasped your hands together to greet her. "Good afternoon, Ms. Romanoff. Your office is ready. Let me know if you need anything." You bowed slightly and continued to the door before she grabbed your arm as you attempted to brush past her. Your bodies were excruciatingly close, you hoped she couldn't hear your heart practically pounding out your chest.
"Stay, dove. You won't be a bother, just continue your work. If you've finished, you're free to leave. But I'd much rather you stay." She blew into your ear, her grip never loosening from your arm as you stood tense at her side.
"I-uh yes, Ms. Romanoff." She beamed at your answer, nodding and reluctantly letting you go. You already missed the feeling of her skin on yours. She continued to make her way behind her desk, sitting in her extravagant chair that made her look ten times more powerful. She began working on her computer, typing away and eyeing you every so often as she continued to work. It wasn't soon before her meeting began, you were thrilled to see her in action. Not knowing exactly what her job was, you were glad to at least gather some intel on what she did for a living. You barely understood the terminology or language they had been using throughout the meeting, you really wished you had taken Russian instead Spanish. You’re not sure if it would’ve mattered anyway because the majority of the time you were distracted by how hot Natasha was, exerting her power and getting fueled up when something didn't go her way, spitting out what you assumed were Russian curse words. You couldn't ignore the same pool of wetness that grew between your legs as you watched her intently. You didn't mind staying her office, sitting patiently in the seat across from her while reading a book you picked from her office library. Natasha most definitely didn't mind either, being able to watch your every move as she worked, she loved every second.
Once her meeting had finished you assumed she would dismiss you, so you rose to your feet as soon as she did. But she only moved to unbutton her blazer, releasing it and letting it drop down her arms with a frustrated sigh. The sight alone was probably the most attractive thing you’ve ever witnessed. Your eyes followed her as she moved to her serving cart and poured herself a glass of scotch, taking a sip with one hand before walking back to her previous spot. She stood across from you, eyeing you amusingly with one hand in her pocket while the other held her drink.
"Is there anything I can do for you, Ms. Romanoff?" You questioned hesitantly, noticing her irritation from the meeting and offering aid. At that remark, it seemed any residual anger from the businesswoman had disappeared and been replaced with lust.
"Yes, actually." She said, a smirk tugging at her mouth ever so slightly. You nodded eagerly, urging her to continue. "Come and kneel for me, sweetheart." You stood in shock for a moment, mentally pinching yourself to see if you'd heard her correctly. “Excuse me?”
When she gave you a look and reiterated it with a, “You heard me, pretty girl.” It was as if your body was on autopilot as your mind ignored the shock of her words and you nervously moved onto the space in front of her. Dropping to your knees compliantly and awaiting silently for her next direction, looking up to her face, doe-eyed and sweet.
She bit her lip as her hand rose to your face, her fingers sliding underneath your chin as her thumb swiped across your bottom lip once again. However, unlike this morning, her thumb pushed further into your mouth, behind your teeth and reaching your tongue. She took a moment to admire you, legs tucked underneath you as your hands rested in your lap pleasantly with her finger in your mouth. "You look so pretty like this, kotenok."
You squirmed on the floor underneath you, trying to ignore the soaked panties you had stained from being with Natasha all day. Wanting to please her, you wrapped your lips around her thumb, your cheeks hollowing around her while your eyes never left her hungry gaze.
Her eyes practically rolled to the back of her head. "Such a good girl. Skazhi mne krasivaya devushka (tell me, pretty girl), what do you want." She requested; her thumb coated in your saliva as she moved it from your mouth to let you answer.
"I- you. I-I want you."
"That's no way to ask, little girl. Where are your manners?"
"Sorry, Ms. Romanoff."
"Wrong. Try again. Tell mommy what you want. Correctly, this time." She released as her grip tightened around your jaw.
"I-I want you, mommy. Please."
She groaned at your words, grinning slyly as her hand continued to caress your face.
She had you right where she wanted you.
"What a good little girl you are. Come sit on mommy's lap, sweetheart." She let out as she dropped to her chair and tapped her right knee twice, thighs spread to leave room for you in between her legs.
Like the obedient girl you were, you rose to your feet, taking only a few steps towards the woman in front of you with insatiable hunger. As you took your place on her lap, your skirt flew up, leaving nothing but your bare bottom in lace panties on Natasha's thigh. Her hand immediately moved to your thigh, rubbing slowly as it made its way up and down. You whimpered in frustration, wanting to feel her hands all over your body. Eventually she reached your clothed heat, stroking painfully slow over your drenched panties. You tried not to squirm under her touch, wanting to push yourself further onto her fingers but her hand firmly wrapped around your waist kept you in place.
She noticed your impatience, chuckling softly before swiping her fingers harder against your core. You moaned at the feeling, pushing your hip into her hand, desperate for her touch. 
"Greedy slut, aren't you?" You couldn't answer, your mind only focusing on grinding your hips against her now spread-out palm.
But soon you felt a stinging slap against your thigh, dangerously close to your heat, you jumped in surprise and whined at the loss of her hand against you. "Answer me."
"Yes, mommy, only for you. Please, I want you so bad."
You didn't have time to concentrate or dwell on the loss as she began stroking your bare thigh again, spreading your legs firmly and pushing her fingers back to rub circles against your cunt. Her mouth soon attached itself to your ear as your mouth was left open at the sensation, letting out labored breaths.
She slid her tongue around your lobe and into your ear, "You have no idea what you do to me, kotenok. Walking around in that little outfit, I've wanted to fuck you senseless since the day you walked in here."
Your legs closed in reflex, feeling the undeniable drench between your legs. But Natasha only growled against your ear, moving her leg to wrap around your ankle, keeping your bottom strapped against her.
"Is that what you want, pretty girl. You want me to fuck you so hard you can’t walk?" She teased across your cheek, peppering wet kisses along your jaw and to your lips, leaving her centimeters away from your mouth. You knew better to answer this time, closing your eyes from sensation of her palm rubbing against you.
"Yes, mommy. I want you inside of me, please, I need you so bad." You whined against her and moaned once she moved your panties to the side and slid her fingers through your juices.
"Oh baby, you're soaked. My good little girl, all wet for me, huh." She continued, looking up to your flustered face as you writhed on top of her.
Before continuing her movements, she paused, "Say red if you want to stop, sweetheart, I won't be mad. Yellow if you want to slow down and green for go. Understood?"
You nodded before realizing she wanted a verbal response. "Yes, mommy."
"Good, printsessa," she smiled before shoving her fingers into your heat, muffling your moan with her mouth and she connected your lips into a heated kiss.
You could barely focus on kissing her back with the way her fingers were deepening inside you. You so desperately wanted to keep up, and you loved the feeling of her plush red lips on yours. The way she tasted only made you crave more; cherry and scotch, it was as addicting as it was sexy. She moved with incredible expertise, knowing how to get you breathless with a lick of her tongue against yours. You could feel her smirk against your mouth when you struggled to keep up with her hungry kisses, instead letting out breathy moans into her mouth. Natasha continued exploring your mouth, growing wetter at the sight of the strings of your mixed saliva connecting your mouths.
She continued her thrusts, adding another finger as her thumb rubbed against your clit, only causing more sounds to escape your mouth. Just as you felt yourself clench around her fingers and tighten your fists as your hips rode against her, she pulled them out, eliciting another whine at the loss. Releasing her hand drenched in your juices and sliding it into your mouth. You were forced to open wide as she commanded.
"Shut up and suck," you did exactly that, running your tongue through her manicured digits and tasting yourself around her. You loved the way her eyes were devouring you, as if she was about to rip you apart on the spot.
She moved to grab your wrist, moving your hand to let you feel her packing through the crotch of her pants as you began stroking her through the fabric. Your thighs clenching at the thought of how big it was. "You want my cock, printsessa, huh? Wanna get it all nice and wet for your pussy?"
You didn't waste a second to respond, desperately letting out a "Yes, mommy, please."
She grinned at your eagerness, motioning her head to the floor in front of her again and saying, "On your knees, krasivaya devushka." You obeyed, dropping to the carpet beneath you once again and placing your hands neatly flat onto your lap.
She watched you like a hawk before rising to her feet, towering over you before unbuckling her belt in front of your face. She pulled the belt from its loops and circled to your back, pulling your arms from in front of you and locking them together in her belt against your back. The position only brought your breasts up further against your tight outfit, displaying them in front of your body. Natasha moved in front of you once again, enjoying the sight but still insatiably wanting more.
"Color, my love."
"Green, mommy."
She smiled before kissing your cheek. After a pause she moved her hand to grab her drink once again, taking a sip before deliberately extending her arm out and pouring it into your cleavage, feeling the cold liquid roll through your body and onto your stomach as your mouth drew out a gasp.
"Oh my, I'm so clumsy, dove. Let mommy help you with that." Natasha feigned with faux innocence as she bent her body down to your level, eyeing your shiny chest and immediately ripping apart the blouse effortlessly with both of her hands. It left you in your matching white lace bra, presenting your breasts perfectly into Natasha's view. She groaned, moving her two hands to grope them above the fabric. You could only watch, immobile with your hands tied behind your back as she unclipped your bra and let it fall down your arms. Your heart raced against your chest as she moved to the drink once again, dropping the cold liquid all over your bare chest as inhaled sharply, feeling the cold sensation run down your body. Natasha only stared further, wanting this picture of you to last in her mind forever. She opted for the next best thing, reaching for her phone on the desk and angling it to get you into view. She snapped a photo of you, knowing she would be using it for later purposes and hoped she would have enough for an album soon, she would make sure of it. She couldn't help herself and soon enough, began sliding her tongue up against your stomach and around your breasts, palming the opposite one and pinching around your nipples. She sucked each of them, humming at the taste of scotch tainting your skin as your arousal grew as you watched her worship you.
After enough teasing, she moved to drop her pants in front of you, revealing the large red strap on teasing your face. She shoved two fingers into your mouth again, coating them in your saliva before she gripped your cheeks open and tilted your face up to her. "Swallow." She directed as she leaned down to drop a ball of her saliva into your mouth before kissing it. She hummed against your face and continued to stand up straight in front of you, pushing the strap into your face.
"Good girl, and you know what good girls get?"
You shook your head, awaiting her response before she continued and began playing with your nipples, "they get to suck on Mommy's cock, you want that, baby, don't you?"
"Yes, mommy, please." You whimpered from underneath her, fighting the urge to rub your heat against the floor.
She pinched down extra hard on your breasts, tugging at the tip and taking the opportunity to shove herself down your throat when you opened it to moan. You internally thanked yourself for your lack of a gag reflex, adjusting to her size quickly as you let her continue. She picked up her pace, both her hands traveling to tug onto your hair and keep you firmly thrusting back and forth on her appendage. Your cheeks hollowed against the toy, swallowing whole to please her.
"That's right, baby, sucking my cock like a good slut. You're such a pretty girl, aren't you, my pretty little girl." Natasha moaned out between her rough thrusts.
Soon she released you, a string of your saliva connecting to tip of her cock and tears brimming your eyes when she pulled your hair back to move your mouth off of her. "What a mess you are. I bet that pussy's just as much of a mess, huh? Why don't we check. Stand up, slut."
You gathered your breath and brought yourself to feet, struggling slightly as your thighs rubbed together and your hands still remained tied behind your back. Natasha smirked at your appearance, chest open at her mercy and plaid in a skirt with suspenders connected to your white stockings.
You were soaked, you knew it, too. You could feel your wetness roll down your thigh and feel it press against your panties. You'd do anything to relieve yourself, but you were completely at Natasha's will.
"Oh, I'll never get tired of this. Maybe I'll make you walk around the house like this. Put on some panties with a vibrator in it and watch you tremble while you do your chores. You'd like that wouldn't you, pretty girl." She teased, her hands caressing your backside before delivering a smack to your ass. You jumped in surprise, squealing before answering her. "Mmph! Mhm! Anything to please you, mommy."
She groaned into your ear, feeling her body ghost over your back as her hands massaged your bottom. After moving to face you once again, her hands never resisting the chance to grope your boobs, she moved her hand down your core. Rubbing the fabric against your cunt as her palm made contact with your clit, making you jerk forward and whimper in pleasure. She released her hand from you, removing your skirt and moving to slide her hand down your stomach and to the top of your panties. She followed the pattern of the lace before hooking her fingers and dropping them to the floor. You stepped out of them and felt yourself being pushed down onto the desk, bending over and wondering when she had cleared it for you. You turned your head to the side, looking down and noticing the mess of papers on the floor from cleaning off her desk. You wondered if you would still be responsible for cleaning it.
Her nails pressed into the curve of your back, pushing you down against the cold wooden desk. Her hands found her way back to your bare bottom, sliding down to smack it once again. You screamed in surprise, knowing it had been harder than the last.
"If you can't keep that pretty little mouth of yours closed, I'm gonna have to do something about it." She vocalized above you.
"I'm sorry, mommy, I'll be good."
"You will be, princess. Now, look at what we have here, such a pretty little pussy. Can't wait to bury myself inside you, baby. Gonna fuck you like the whore you are." Natasha groaned at the thought, enjoying the whimpering mess you were bent over her desk. She dropped to her knees behind you, running her tongue up your thigh and following the trail of your slick until she reached the spot you needed most.
You let out a sob in relief, moving back to grind against her tongue and the way it pressed flat against your heat. She continued her movements, teasing your folds before shoving her tongue inside of you. Once she began to play with your clit, you screamed in pleasure, but soon whined once she retracted her mouth. It wasn't soon before she appeared in front of your eyes with your white lace panties in hand.
"I told you to be quiet, slut. Now mommy's gonna have to do something about that." She scolded before rolling your drenched panties into a ball and into your mouth, gagging you. She caressed your face gently as she smiled down at you, brushing loose strands of hair from your face before moving behind you once again. She pulled your hair, lifting your body flush against hers. "Now, kroshka, I'm gonna play with your pretty little pussy and if you can be a good girl, I'll let you come. But if you can't keep those panties in your mouth, I'll be punishing you tonight. Color."
"Green." You let out, muffled by the fabric occupying your mouth. She flipped your body to face her, using her muscled arms to lift your hips onto her desk and manhandling you. She forced your legs apart, letting cool air hit your bare bottom and drop your wetness onto her desk. Natasha loved the sight of your cunt glistening in front of her. You placed your palms on the surface behind you to sturdy yourself, but once your eyes widened at the vibrator Natasha had in her hand, you weren't sure you'd be able to hold yourself together. She laughed at your reaction, moving her hands to your breasts again and stroking over your nipples.
Catching you off guard, she immediately pressed the vibrator down to your core, buzzing against you and having you scream in pleasure against your gag. She immediately began rubbing it through your folds, teasing you and ignoring the only spot you truly desired. You wailed against her, pushing yourself further onto the machine before she slapped your thigh.
"Naughty girl, I'm the only one who gets to fuck you. Stay still, or your wrists won't be the only thing that's tied." She ordered, pressing further against your cunt and clutching at your nipples. 
She took mercy on you, moving the vibrator onto your clit and enjoying your reaction as you moaned in pleasure on top of her. Your head was thrown back, and your eyes rolled to back of your head once she began fucking you with two fingers. You could hear the obscene noises coming from your core as she thrusted into you, even louder were the groans and whimpers escaping your throat, only to be muffled by the gag.
"You hear that? You're so wet against my fingers, can't imagine how you're gonna sound taking my cock, slut." She continued to curl her fingers against you, moving the vibrator against your clit painfully. You could feel yourself reaching the edge, bucking your hips into her movements and whining against the device.
"You wanna cum, pretty girl?" You nodded frantically above her, practically riding her fingers as the sensation on your heat grew stronger.
"Cum all over my fingers. Now." She demanded, adding a third finger. You did just that, biting down on your gag before becoming a whining mess. Covered in your own slick as the sensation washed over you while Natasha kept her pace. Your thighs were trembling on top of the desk when you let out a final cry, collapsing against her.
She halted her movements and grazed her hand over your face as she pulled your panties out of your mouth. Sweat was trembling down your body as she began kissing your face. You struggled to keep your eyes open to watch her suck each of the fingers she had fucked you with. You could taste yourself on her tongue as she connected your mouths, dominating you in record time. Your breath hitched when her hands and lips began to roam all over your body. Tweaking with your nipples in one hand while she sucked the other.
Soon the toy between her legs found its way between your folds, sliding itself against your sensitive cunt and becoming coated in your cum. It wasn't long before you were dripping again, despite barely coming down from your orgasm.
"Is my printsessa ready for my cock?" She taunted, continuing to grind her hips into your center. You gasped as the toy slid across your clit, attempting to thrash away from the feeling but Natasha's hand on your leg kept you still as she released a dark chuckle.
You gathered your thoughts, responding to her before you received punishment. "Yes, mommy. Please."
"Aw, my pretty girl can do better than that. Beg me, slut."
You writhed on top of her, letting the moans fall effortlessly from your throat as you rolled your hips on her length. Natasha noticed you getting lost in enjoyment before she moved her cock away from you and slapped it against your cunt. "Answer me."
You struggled to get your words out, growing frustrated you shouted, "P-Please, fuck me! Need you inside of me, I'll be a good girl. Please just fuck me, mommy! Use me!"
She grinned, beaming at your desperation and wasted no time before lining her tip and inserting herself into your core. The moan you let out was the loudest yet, your head was thrown back in pleasure and mouth left open as she plunged herself further into you.
"Oh my- fuck. Nat, you're so big."
Her head snapped up to your face, you hadn't noticed your slip-up but once she gave you no warning and slammed her entire length into your pussy, you could only scream in satisfaction. Natasha roughly picked your body up from the desk, twisting you and shoving your head down to bend over once again. Her cock never escaping your pussy, she began relentlessly thrusting into you, her hands reaching in front of her to grab your hair.
"That's not my name, naughty girl." She scowled, her hand coming down to smack your bottom repeatedly while you flailed beneath her.
"S-sorry, mommy! Please, harder, you feel so good." You cried between her thrusts. You didn't think it was possible for Natasha to quicken her pace, but she began pushing in and out of you rapidly, the only sounds filling the room were her grunts, the embarrassing squelch of your pussy, and sound of her skin flapping against yours when she bottomed out at each thrust.
"Such a dirty girl, taking mommy's cock so well. This pussy was made for me, wasn't it, baby." She moaned on top of you, pulling your hair to bring your back flush against her body. Her hand moved to your bare stomach, gliding to clutch your breasts and pull at your nipples. You let your head fall back onto her shoulder, you could feel your knees trembling from beneath you. If it weren't for Natasha's sharp thrusts and hands holding your body, you're not sure you would be able to stand on your own.
Once her fingers found its way to your sensitive clit you couldn't take it anymore, between her rubbing circles on your clit and her relentless force on your cunt you felt yourself helplessly clenching and squirming around the toy.
"P-Please, mommy, can I c-come." You cried, your voice wavering between her movements.
"Come, baby, be a good girl for mommy." Natasha began focusing on pleasuring you, playing with your clit and reaching to tug on your nipples while she fucked you into your orgasm. Her hips continued ramming into you as your rode out your high, letting out noises you didn't know you were capable of making and screaming her name in a loud moan.
You slumped against her body, breathless and covered in cum, sweat, and alcohol. You turned your head to face Natasha tirelessly, she smiled against you and placed a kiss to your lips.
"My good little girl, you did so well, detka." You hummed at her praise, enjoying the feeling of her fingertips caressing your body while her strap was still buried inside you.
"Come on, baby, let's get you cleaned up."
3K notes · View notes
bby-bo · 1 year
Text
When the Boss Comes Knocking pt. 2
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
the love on part one has been so wild ❤️ thank you guys sm for reading, I hope this drags you on an even wilder emotional rollercoaster than last time 🤠🤠
I sure as fuck have no proper explanation for my actions here, brace yourselves.
Summary: Sakusa knows he screwed up, but he’s quick to get on his knees to work for your forgiveness.
Warnings: solid combo of angst, fluff, and smut, reader is all over the place, Sakusa eating p*ssy 🫶🏼
Tumblr media
“Always Yours, Kiyoomi”
The note had sat on your desk for 3 days, staring you down with the heat of hell tucked into the ink scratched on the paper.  It was Friday, the day the Sakusa Group was to officially purchase the small publishing house you wrote for, but the man himself had yet to show up since your last encounter.  
3 painfully slow days of no contact or sign of Sakusa had felt like 3 years, and you couldn’t help but feel angry. Angry that he thought he could come back into your life at his own convenience, with no explanation of his leaving for so long. Upset that you wanted him to come back. Pissed at yourself for letting him treat you like this. 
The back and forth in your own brain was clouded by the memories of him, one hand on your throat and one in your hair, pulling you in. The look of satisfaction on his face when you finally called him by his first name again. The sweet bliss of his deep voice directed at you. It was inescapable even on your morning commute to work. 
Opening the door to the lobby, you greeted Josie as always. 
“Morning Josie”
“Oh good morning! There was a message left for you, actually. Mr. Sakusa’s secretary called and mentioned setting up a lunch meeting today around 1 pm.” 
Surprise and irritation shot through the fog in your brain. He couldn’t even call you himself?? His behavior was getting ridiculous, and at this point you were going to completely miss the next 4 deadlines for the book you were working on if this distraction kept up.
“What?! Don’t respond please, I’ll just eat lunch here like usual” A guilty blush immediately spread across her face and you just dreaded whatever she was about to say.
“Um… I already scheduled it. Sorry! It felt like maybe you guys got along last time since you spoke for so long in your office and I thought maybe it would be a good idea to-”
“What??? Josie NO!” Complete horror washed across you like an ice bath, and you immediately realized that you were not dressed for a CEO level lunch date. 
“I’m sorry to spring it on you like this. But hey, at least he’s sending a car to bring you, right?” She finished her sentence with a bright smile, totally not understanding why this was the absolute worst thing in the world. 
You gave her a fake laugh and a smile, trying not to be too mean to her in your mind before heading straight into your office and slumping into the seat. 
“Always Yours, Kiyoomi”
The note stared back at you, and you narrowed your eyes at his name. Fuck. Off. Sakusa. If he wanted to play this game, you certainly weren’t going to make it easy on him. 
You had no time to let the regrets from your last encounter stew when time was not on your side today.  Stealing your nerves, you got to thinking of all the things you’ve been wanting to say to him, all the things you’ve been dying to ask.  But time raced against you, and when Josie knocked on your office door it felt as though no time had passed at all. You were still just as nervous as before, but an unfamiliar man in a suit followed behind Josie, ready to take you to your demise- a.k.a the Sakusa Group headquarters. 
Tumblr media
It was 45 steps from your office to the car, 30 minutes in the car between offices, and now only 10 steps from the car into the massive lobby of the tower where the beast resided.  Someone greeted you straight away, and escorted you all the way to Sakusa’s door.
Shit. Shitshitshitshit. Your mind and heart were racing, but you took in a deep breath and reminded yourself to resist his efforts to win you over. Yea right, resist the irresistible. Great plan.
The door opened, and there he was. Goddamn this was going to be more difficult than you thought. 
Sakusa’s deep voice rang out, smooth and rich like dark chocolate. His usual black button down and slacks made him the picture of all your work romance fantasies- not that you were thinking of anything like that. Certainly not.
“Thank you George, you may go.” Your escort bowed in respect, and closed the door on his way out. Sakusa said nothing, just smirked as he stood and walked toward the door, and locked it. 
You stood frozen, feeling the heat of his chest warming your back. A large hand brushed your hair away from your face on one side, exposing your neck as Sakusa planted a soft kiss beneath the corner of your jaw, letting his breath tickle over your skin. You could just feel the smirk widening across his face. But as much as your knees were already growing weak, your anger refused to be forgotten this time. 
Your figure’s sharp turn cut his growing smile off into a small frown, those dark brows furrowing slightly.
“Stop that. You owe me an explanation and I won’t let you near me until I get it.” Your voice was shaky, but you got your words out clearly. 
Sakusa just closed the space between you again, towering over you with slight irritation on his face. This was obviously not how he expected this meeting to go. 
“What is with these horrible greetings each time we meet? I’ll teach you this lesson as many times as I need to-”
“YOU were the one who told me not to call you Kiyoomi all those years ago, so don’t gimme that bullshit!! You don’t get to break up with me, be a total dick during our last conversation, disappear with no contact then return into my life like nothing happened years later! There is absolutely no way I can accept anything you offer me when you have completely shattered the very foundation of our relationship, Sakusa!”
The pent up energy, anxiety and ire that had slowly been collecting in your heart and mind this week was at its boiling point, finally spilling over as angry tears gathered in your eyes, your finger jabbing into his chest. 
His demeanor changed entirely as he listened to your rant, and a serious look crept over his face, but he made no move to interrupt you. Even now, when you were so worked up that you couldn’t see straight, you couldn’t decide if you wanted to push him away or wanted to cry into his arms. He let you finish before speaking. 
“So this is how you’ve been feeling. Come here, sweetheart.” 
Simple acknowledgement was all it took for your tears to fall, and strong arms gave you comfort as he tucked your head beneath his chin. His fingers stroked your hair, and that damn cologne filled your senses as you tried to contain your emotions.
He brought his palms to your cheeks, thumbs brushing away the salty tears beneath your eyes as his gaze softened into something you’ve missed so desperately since high school. His tone was serious but gentle as he spoke his next words.
“I know you’re angry, yes?” You nodded aggressively, refusing to meet his eyes.
“I hear you. I want you to look at me sweetheart, tell me how I can make it up to you. What can I do to fix this?” 
“I don’t know if this can be fixed Sakusa, I thought you just walked off and forgot about me after high school and I-”
“You couldn’t be more wrong.”
“If I’m wrong then prove it! Some explanation, anything is better than the nothing you left me with!”
Sakusa let out a heavy sign before pushing his hands into the roots of your hair, and kissing your forehead. He took your hand, fingers intertwined with yours as you swiped at the last of your tears. 
“It doesn’t excuse the way that I’ve treated you, and I sure as fuck am not proud of it but I can give you an explanation. Let’s sit while we talk, yeah?”
Tumblr media
You followed him into a connecting room, a dining room of sorts, complete with cushioned seats and a glass coffee table. Sakusa settled in a seat next to yours and turned to set his serious gaze on you, so you might understand his sincerity.
His chest expanded as he took a deep breath, and released it slow.
“My family has always been demanding, and I knew their wish for me was to take over the Sakusa Group as early as possible. But I was young and dumb, and I didn’t have the confidence that I could actually do it. I know it’s no excuse for leaving you like that, but I was scared to fail. Disappointing you was something I couldn’t handle, and I wanted to prove to myself that I could become someone worthy of taking care of you one day. So I made sure to cut ties and cut them sharp so that if I did fail, you would hopefully never find out.”
This… this was not what you expected. Had he always been so concerned with your judgment of him? Why did he not let you support him? You had every confidence in your Kiyoomi back then, and you had always tried your best to show that, so why..? Did you not tell him enough? How could you ever possibly be disappointed in him?
“I didn’t forget what I said to you back then. I’m sorry I was so selfish, sweetheart.”
Tears threatened to spill over again, and you pressed the heels of your palms into your eyes. There was a soft shuffling sound and the scraping of a chair across the hardwood, and when Sakusa tugged your wrists from your face he was kneeling before you. Still tall enough on his knees to be nearly eye level with you. 
“Don’t cry baby, look at me.” His fingers tucked beneath your chin, raising your head slightly. 
“Tell me what I wanna hear. Come on love” You knew what he wanted immediately. 
“Kiyoomi” Your voice was just above a whisper, but enough understanding was translated in that one word. Not quite forgiveness, but understanding. 
This had always been a thing between you two, even in high school. When first names were used after an argument, you could both recognize that things were back on the right path. So it wasn’t quite forgiveness, but it was a step. 
“Again.” But he was still just as greedy as ever. Gripping your chin a bit tighter, he brought his face right up to your neck and softly nipped at the skin on your jaw, tongue laving over the skin to sooth it.
“Kiyoomi”
“That’s my girl. Now, how should I make it up to you, hm?” His hands gripped your thighs just above your knees, squeezing into the flesh.
The tone of his voice switched, dripping with honey and saturating your mind with memories of twisted sheets and bated breaths. 
“I think I know just where to start” Shit, that voice. You were sure it would be the death of you one day, but right now, it was your lifeline. 
One of his thumbs hooked under the hem of your dress, baring one thigh ever so slowly, as his other hand guided your fingers into his hair. His gaze held yours as he began to kiss and bite a trail upwards following the exposed skin. 
If there was one thing your romance readers raved about, it was the smut that some of your books contained. But you could hardly claim any credit when your inspiration for those scenes came from Kiyoomi. The Kiyoomi who loved seeing you flustered and blushing beneath him, hand around your throat and embarrassment crawling up your cheeks. Loved seeing tears of overstimulation roll down so he could lick them away. That was this Kiyoomi, the one that knelt before you now.  
A hard bite on the inside of your thigh brought you back down to earth, a yelp of surprise escaping as your eyes snapped open.
“Be a good girl and keep your eyes on me.” You nodded as you tried to catch your breath, small bits of air coming out in light pants. 
Pushing your dress all the way around your waist, Kiyoomi gripped your ass roughly with both hands and tugged your body to the edge of your seat, legs thrown over his broad shoulders. His eyes closed as he turned to bury his face into the thickness of one of your thighs, fingers dipping into the waistline of your panties. He watched completely enamored as he pulled them off your body, the evident wet spot sticking to the source of your arousal. 
In one quick movement, he sat back on his heels and rid you of your panties entirely before settling back in on his knees. Two thick fingers swiped at your slit, gathering the stickiness there and bringing it to your mouth. 
“Open.” You did as he asked without hesitation, and you could taste the saltiness on the pads of his fingers as he pressed down on your tongue. But you knew better than to wrap your lips around his fingers- knew to wait for instruction. His smirk returned in full as he realized you hadn’t forgotten his rules.
“Suck.” 
His grip around your thigh tightened as you obeyed. Taking his fingers from your mouth, he pressed them back at your entrance, teasing you up and down as he finally, finally, brought his mouth to your clit. His tongue circled the nerves as he watched your eyes roll back, your mouth open just slightly. 
Now Kiyoomi was never a religious man, but he would’ve prayed to any god to never forget this sight. Legs open for him, pretty face silently begging him to touch you. He wanted it permanently imprinted in his memory, wanted it to be the only thing he saw every time he closed his eyes. His control snapped.
Fingers plunged forward into you and Kiyoomi was lost in your tight heat as he set a quick pace, teeth tugging lightly on your clit before circling it with his tongue over and over again. He still knew your body so well even after so much time had passed, and he knew exactly how to drive you over the edge. 
“O-omi” 
“Hm?” He refused to pull his face away from your sweet pussy, humming against you in response, sending light vibrations that tickled up your spine.
“G-gonna cum Omi” His fingers curled upward and hit that spongy spot, as he pulled his mouth away for just a moment to respond. He pressed a thick forearm down across your hips, not letting you escape.
“Go on baby, cum in my mouth. Wanna taste you” 
Kiyoomi shoved his tongue inside you, nose buried right up against that sensitive bundle of nerves as he reached up to fill your mouth with the fingers that had previously been fucking in and out of you. His other fingers gripped your jaw roughly as he pressed down on your tongue, sliding them further and further back into your wet mouth. Tears gathered in the corners of your eyes, doing your best to take what he gave you without gagging.
The release that spread over you had you crying out around his fingers, legs shuddering on his shoulders as his forearm held you in place, never pulling his tongue from you until he was satisfied he had tasted every drop. 
But he only allowed you a moment to catch your breath.
Kiyoomi tugged your whole body straight off the chair, pulling your thighs to sit over his where he knelt.  He secured his arms around you and slotted his mouth against your lips, tongue slipping against yours to let you taste yourself on him. Crushing you against his chest, he let out a low groan and let a large palm tangle into your hair, tugging it slightly. 
“Always been Omi’s favorite girl, you know that? Missed you so much sweetheart. Promise I won’t leave you again. Ever. And I’m so sorry I upset you my love” 
And as he pressed his forehead against yours, you realized the signature on his note had always been true, more so than you realized. 
“Always Yours, Kiyoomi”
831 notes · View notes
linkemon · 8 months
Text
Valentine's Day 2023 headcanons 1
Friendly reminder that English is not my first language. You can check my Masterlists both in English and Polish here.
Tumblr media
Shikanoin Heizou
✧ Who else could come up with a romantic investigation? Of course, a one-of-a-kind, always busy detective. You were the investigator and he was your fugitive. At least that's what you assumed, because in fact you knew where you'd find him from the beginning.
✧ You woke up in the morning to see a piece of paper with a clue. You followed it, smiling to yourself. Heizou knew that he would have to stay longer at the agency that day, so he stayed up all night preparing various activities for you in the city.
✧ Each note was written exactly in his style. You could almost hear his words written on the paper. Especially when he called you sweetheart time and time again. Most of the puzzles were rhyming.
✧ You had to admit that halfway through the tour your legs started to hurt. At the same time, however, you were driven by curiosity to see what would be around the next corner.
✧ Activities included the best restaurants in Inazuma, picking up Heizou's pre-ordered kimono for you, and visiting the hot springs. You even got Yae Miko's unique autograph under her publisher's new book that you've been absolutely crazy about lately.
✧ When you got to the end of the tour, of course you saw the agency. Heizou perfectly deduced when you'd come, that's why he was collecting the last documents from the desk. He greeted you with a kiss, saying that the fun has only just begun.
Tumblr media
Wanderer
✧ As a Scaramouche, he never imagined he would ever have the opportunity to celebrate this holiday. When he took on a new name, it didn't make him see Valentine's Day any differently. Just another stupid opportunity for people.
✧ When Nahida innocently asked what he had prepared for you and informed you that your gift for him was fantastic, he knew he was falling into the trap of the archon of wisdom. He then replied angrily that it was none of her business and walked away. At the same time, however, he began to think intensely about the fact that it might be worth doing something.
✧ Wanderer polled the few friends he had, including a bazaar vendor, for ideas. He was supposed to meet you tonight. Time was running out and every gift seemed inappropriate to him.
✧ He finally decided to buy you a necklace that could hold something small. He didn't know what to put inside and said to himself he wouldn't give it to you. In such a state you caught him on the street, saying it's time for your usual meeting.
✧ Seeing your gift, he thrust a necklace into your hand, saying that he got this antique from someone in the bazaar and it will be of no use to him. After all, he doesn't care about Valentine's Day...
✧ That evening you asked Wanderer to take a picture with you. You keep a miniature of it in your necklace as a memento of that day.
Tumblr media
Ningguang
✧ Valentine's Day, of course, was spent rich but at the same time with you in mind. Everything was planned in advance as befits Tianquan.
✧ Throughout her busy schedule, Ningguang has reserved a whole day just for you in advance. She told the assistants not to disturb you unless Liyue is in mortal danger.
✧ You spent the day at Jade Chamber. In the morning you enjoyed breakfast prepared by Xiangling herself. It was nice to finally be able to eat in peace, knowing that your beloved was not in any way rushed by her work.
✧ Yun Jin graced the dinner with her performance. It was a new opera she was happy to write for your special request. It told the story of your love. Ningguang held your hand tight at special moments. Though she tried to appear composed, yet you could easily see her agitation.
✧ The culmination of the day was a fireworks show. Admittedly, it wasn't as spectacular as in the case of Lantern Rite but certainly many people in the city saw it as well. Invited from the recently opened Inazuma Yoimiya, who was a specialist in this field, created your special firework. It resembled two intertwined hearts as a sign that you will always be together.
98 notes · View notes
hallo-anon · 7 months
Note
UMMM MORE COLLEGE/BAND AU STUFF??? HOW CAN YOU GET US ALL HOOKED AND NOT KEEP SUPPLIYING THE GOODS???
seriously? So fucking good
~Aggie 🩵
Las Almas babies?
Sorry this took so long! Motivations been weird...
Three students from Las Almas Universidad were transferred for exceptional grades and performance.
Alejandro Vargas is a journalism major, writing for his university’s newspaper, “Los Vaqueros Periódico” The Cowboy Newspaper. His paper focused on school and city events. He also published an anonymous totally not Alejandro himself articles about the corruption of drugs and greed in Las Almas.
When he transferred, he didn’t join the journalism club, instead focusing on his studies. When Rudy joined the futbol team, Ale also tried out. He was very quickly regarded as one of the best el delantero the front on the team. He and Rudy became known as “la espada y el escudo” the sword and the shield. When asked, he says he and Rudy are just close friends. Everyone knows it’s bullshit.
Rudolfo Parra, prefers Rudy, is a fine arts major with a specialty in photography. He was also a part of “Los Vaqueros Periódico”. He was very loved by the people of Las Almas. When they transferred, he joined the “Still Thinking of a Name”’s newspaper. He’s not the main photographer, but he’s still pretty well known. After attending different sports games for the newspaper, he became interested in the futbol team. When he tried out, their goalie had just graduated. He was pretty happy when Ale joined the team as well. 
Due to his talent for capturing moving objects very well, he was often assigned to get pictures of the colorguard. That’s how he met Soap, Roach, and eventually Ghost and Gaz. It took him a pretty long time to befriend Ghost because he found him very intimidating at first. He introduced them to Ale, and Ale became quick friends with Soap. Soap teases him about his obvious feelings towards Rudy. this usually leads to Ale calling him a hypocrite because he is obviously whipped for Ghost.
The last student who transferred was Valeria Garza, an international trade major. People are a little confused when they hear that because she seems a bit too aggressive for that route. Ale and Rudy seem to have a very bad relationship with her. No one really knows why. The story is that Alejandro and Valeria dated for around 3 years. During Ale’s investigations into El Sin Nombre, a notorious drug dealer in Las Almas, he started to see a pattern related to Valeria’s schedule and the acts of violence. When he confronted her, she simply smiled and shrugged, saying “Lo siento detective” Sorry detective and walked away. After her transfer, unsurprisingly El Sin Nombre followed. She has a huge influence on the school and kinda rules over the students.
30 notes · View notes
Note
Lecturing, please!
(For the WIP tag game, list of titles in the og WIP game post here.)
But of course! Several of you asked about this one, so I put a quick summary of the premise as well as a snippet from the fic in PART ONE, and I'll give you a continuation of that snippet here in part two, and perhaps the mystery of the identity of the handsome stranger might even be revealed in PART THREE!
Enjoy!
PART TWO
All this changed one day when Hob asked the class if anyone remembered what the first known book to be published by William Caxton was and was met by total silence. This was not an entirely unusual occurrence, but it usually happened only when he asked them about something actually obscure. “What, none of you remember?” he asked, then when his only response was a few head shakes, he added, “Did none of you do the assigned reading this week? Not a single one?”
Even if that was true, someone should have known that piece of trivia, surely? What did they teach the youth of today? There was some murmuring amongst the students, then one of the less shy ones piped up, saying, “I don’t think you assigned us anything for this week.” “Didn’t I?” He tried to think back to the end of the lecture last week and realised that no, he hadn’t said anything about it. He had been a bit tired last week. Actually, he was always a bit tired by this point in the week. Fridays right after lunch was not his favourite time to lecture. “Whoops, must have slipped my mind to mention it. Let this serve as a lesson to regularly check the schedule and instructions online and not rely fully on my reminders.” Some more uncomfortable whispering followed this, and another student said, “Um, it’s not actually online either.” She held up her phone as proof, as if he could read the text on the screen at that distance. He’d have to take her word for it. “Christ, all right. My bad. I humbly retract my scolding. I’ll look over it later to make sure it’s fully updated in future.” As he was mentally rewriting the next part of the lecture in light of his oversight, he was interrupted by a voice saying, “The Canterbury Tales.” It was a deep, rich, velvety voice which Hob couldn’t place for the life of him. He blinked, returning to the there and then. “Sorry?” “Caxton’s first major publication,” the voice clarified, and Hob looked over to see that it was Mr Front Row who had spoken up, because of course the man would have the most gorgeous voice to go along with his looks, just to torture Hob. “It was The Canterbury Tales. 1476, if memory serves.” Tired as he was, Hob had to look down at his notes to confirm this. “That’s…absolutely right. Huh.” He nodded at the man, then gave the rest of the class a pointed look. “At least one of you read ahead, eh?” he said, trying to put a humorous spin on it. There were a few scattered chuckles among the students, but the man did not smile—he very rarely did. However, the corner of his mouth twitched in a way which suggested that he was not far off. As Hob resumed his lecturing, he tried not to feel too pleased about making the man almost-smile, because no. Nope. Nuh-uh. Donotgo there. Not a good place to go at all. Best to just put it all out of mind and forget he ever heard that fucking voice. Given how quiet the man had been up until now, he’d likely not hear it again in a hurry. Hopefully. Unfortunately.
11 notes · View notes
authorsadiethatcher · 2 months
Text
Tumblr media
Welcome to March. In the northern hemisphere, where I live, it is the start of meteorological spring. Except the weather didn't switch with the month and things here are starting out wet and cold. But the extra indoor time should be good for writing.
Last month I talked about finally being caught up on writing. I try to maintain pretty strict deadlines, but I fell off at the end of February. Two days behind schedule may not seem like a lot, but it feels like a lot, especially when working on longer books, which I'll talk more about later.
The big news for this month is something I can't actually share yet. But pay attention on March 9 for some cool news from me. I just don't like having to wait, but it's something I'm really excited about.
A quick reminder that you can find my books on Amazon, Smashwords, Google Play Books, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Everand. You can also read everything I’ve published under my Sadie Thatcher name since last May on Ream, which is a subscription platform built specifically for authors. You can check out my Ream page below.
Ream: https://reamstories.com/sadiethatcher
And speaking of Ream, I have a Ream exclusive novel called The Muse (extreme dollification) that is now complete. I've made the first three chapters available for free. All you have to do is sign up as a follower at the link above to get a taste of my first real story that is too extreme for Amazon.
This month I plan to spend some time on my other pen name, Libby Feron. As Libby, I write fantasy romance. I’ll have a free novella available to prepare for a new trilogy that I hope to publish this year. The trilogy will be focused on a previously introduced character as she heads off to a college for magical people. I don’t talk about my fantasy writing often, so checking out https://libbyferon.com/ and signing up for the email newsletter is the best way to stay informed. And that free novella will be exclusive to newsletter subscribers, so you’ll want to sign up for that. However, I'm also considering an entirely different book to clear out the cobwebs in my head. We'll see.
Now to focus on this month’s upcoming books. I have two ongoing series. Bimbo Future will soon be complete with Free to Be releasing in a few days. This will follow a similar pattern of a fairy showing a woman a possible bimbo future and persuading her to choose that over a more conventional life. And then there's Quantum Bimbo. This is a slow burn transformation series following one woman as she encounters a recurring time loop that leads her down a path toward becoming a bimbo. The first book, Déjà Vu, is out now and the rest of the trilogy will be released in the first half of the month. I'm really excited for this series.
Some of the other upcoming books I’ve got in the pipeline for this month is a series based on the concept of a woman's intelligence, or other aspects of her life, being stolen and held for ransom, forcing her to turn toward bimbo jobs to pay the ransom. But once she goes bimbo, it's hard to stop. I've also got a plan for another series that could include societal changes. I'm keeping my cards on this one close to the chest, because I'm not entirely sure what is going to happen in it yet.
Something else I'm considering, but I'm only considering right now, is to write a few flash fiction stories, one or two per month, and put them up on Ream for free for anyone who wants to follow me there. It's time permitting, of course.
So that’s what you can expect in March. It’s a packed month, especially because my schedule will make for 11 published books this month. I average 10 usually with a release every 3 days. There will be a couple months like this in 2024, with 11 releases instead of 10.
Have a sexy and bimbo-filled March and happy spring in the top half of the world!
8 notes · View notes
romanceclub-lovers · 5 months
Text
"Heart of Trespia" Wincy author of the novel answers to players part 2
28/11/2023
Tumblr media
🔔 Wincy author of HOT Q&A.
1. Were there scenes in the story that had to be scrapped or replaced?
- It seems to me that all writers do this, even those who write only for themselves.
2. What do you usually do when you can't find inspiration to write a story?
- I have a terrible sleep schedule. I usually run out of ideas due to lack of sleep and my brain shutting down, so I take a nap and then try again!
3. Did Wincy ever have an "Oh, I wish I could change that" or "I wish I could fix that" scene in Heart of Trespia?
- I have a lot of them.
4. How are your cats doing?
- Spoiled and a little overweight because they keep stealing food from each other!
5. Could you tell us a little about Reinhold and Hilde's good childhood memories?
- When Reinhold was a child, he was often sad because he could not, like other children, enjoy sweets and all kinds of desserts. To make him feel better, Hilde prepared him a new, unique salty dish every day, giving him the opportunity to not lose interest in food, because he looked forward to every culinary delight.
6. Where was Uda born?
- Uda comes from a kingdom with harems because she was born not a queen, but a concubine. She was most likely born in Maith or Shaadha, her mother being the foreign bride of a king who reigned before Leoric or Ozer.
7. How many kingdoms were destroyed in Isrion? How long existed before they were destroyed?
- I never thought about what happened so long ago, but some of this information is a spoiler. Xael probably absorbed more than three small kingdoms. Keep in mind that long before the treaties were made, there were many more dwarf states that tried to take over each other until they merged into the five that currently exist. The war most likely ended only after Trespia, Rajahili, Maith and Shaadha were formed and an alliance was formed to prevent an invasion from Xael.
8. Did you want to change anything in terms of the plot or is everything going as originally planned?
- Nothing that I can remember. Sometimes I don't follow the plan, but honestly I don't look back or question the plot points involved. Thinking about this when the work has already been published is extremely unproductive.
9. How did Ellaire realize that she had fallen in love with Reinhold?
- This probably happened at the moment when she became unbearably sad from the realization that she would have to abandon him and return to the castle, and then punish him for what he had done to her people.
10. If you could add another love interest to the story, who would it be?
- Nobody. I've never seen another character as a love interest for Ellaire, not even One or Azzo.
Tumblr media
11. What songs do you associate with the main characters of the novel?
- Honestly, I don't know. I never associate songs with my work.
12. How exactly did Reinhold save Cyril? How did their friendship develop?
- Cyril was the leader of a small group of mercenaries from Shaadha. They came to Trespia in order to kill, but were caught and sentenced to execution. Reinhold had just lost Phaedo and wanted someone to serve him who would not question his decisions. He paid the executioner and took all the mercenaries to Piel estate. Even though Cyril had taken the oath, he was grateful to Reinhold for the second chance and for appreciating his unique skills without judgment.
13. Do you believe in astrology?
- Not really, no.
14. What is the sexual orientation of the main characters?
- Ellaire - depends on the player.
- Wyatt - Ellairesexual
- Reinhold - heterosexual
- D'Mario - heterosexual
- Gisella - homosexual
- Delias - pansexual
- Vanora - bisexual
15. Will there be any information about Octobian in a future update? If not, can Wincy briefly tell us something else about this mysterious continent and share interesting facts about it?
- I had ideas on this matter even before writing the ST, but most likely they will remain just ideas. Copyright is a complicated thing.
16. Which fantasy setting does Wincy prefer - European or East Asian? You writes about the first, but, as I understand it, she also reads about the other - in particular, Chinese.
- I love everything!
17. Does Wincy read webtoons - digital comics? I remember you once mentioned that you reads novels in the wuxia genre, but that’s a little different.
- No, I don’t read. Although I thought about transferring my Episode stories into webtoons, I can't draw.
18. How many languages do you know besides Chinese and English? Do you want to learn something new?
- Only these two. At 15, I tried to learn German for a while because of a cute German exchange student. However, I could only introduce myself in three sentences, and he wasn't particularly impressed.
Tumblr media
19. Do you watch any TV series? It doesn’t matter: American, British, Chinese, etc.
- Yes! I have subscriptions to Netflix, HBO, Amazon and Paramount+. Before I lost interest in Marvel after Avengers: Endgame, I was on Disney+. Honestly, of their latest films, the only ones I can fully enjoy are Spider-Man: No Way Home and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. Part 3".
20. Why the fantasy genre? What attracted you to it?
- Just as readers escape reality by immersing themselves in reading fantasy, I do this by immersing myself in this world from the other side. That's why I love writing fantasy, whether it's epic or mundane.
21. Do you have any favorite authors/writers?
- My favorite will always be Mr. Jin Yong.
22. Will you ever have a live broadcast with subscribers?
- Because of PCOS (translator's note: polycystic ovary syndrome) and because of my age, I feel very unattractive. In recent years, I have been avoiding photos and video calls.
23. What are your interests/hobbies?
- A hobby for people who have time. I don't have time anymore (lol). I like to read and cook from time to time.
24. What video games do you like?
- World of Warcraft was a big part of my life, I devoted about 16 years to it. I also love Dragon Age and Mass Effect from Bioware, although I gave up halfway through Andromeda, the Ezio trilogy, Origin, Odyssey Assassin's Creed, GTA 4 and 5, Tomb Raider - both classic and new, as well as Mirror's Edge.
25. Who are your favorite singers/music artists?
- Too many to list. My favorite work playlist is the music of the Secret Garden (translator's note: Secret Garden (from English - “Secret Garden”) is an Irish-Norwegian duo performing Celtic and neoclassical music.). I can't afford to be distracted by lyrics.
26. Is there anything you would like to master? Some new skill, for example.
- It would be great to be able to fly, but you can only dream about it.
27. Will we learn anything about Maith? There is very little information about this kingdom. Our main characters were not there, unlike other states.
(The question was asked before the previous update).
- I can't spoil it, but I think you'll get some answers.
28. What real countries were the inspiration for the 5 Kingdoms of Isrion?
- Except that Shaadha is very similar to India, the rest of the states are a mixture of many cultures with creative additions.
29. If we draw a parallel with the real world, then what approximately century/period in the real world will coincide with the time in the world of “The Heart of Trespia”?
- None. When I create fictional worlds, I try not to set such restrictions, and also avoid using electricity in a world without flush toilets.
30. Why weren't there any animated CG in Heart of Trespia? Are you planning to add them in a new story?
- Unfortunately, Wincy cannot answer this question due to NDA.
31. What was Phaedo’s fate after he and Reinhold parted ways?
- The players decide his fate. Most likely, after he left Coral Ridge, he found peace in solitude, away from unrest.
W. Thanks for reading and loving the story.
Source of the interview provided link below 👇
Art credit: Wincy's fantasy world
19 notes · View notes
nekoannie-chan · 1 year
Text
Secrets Chapter 11: Other Feelings
Tumblr media
Pairing: Steve Rogers X OFC, Brock Rumlow X OFC.
Word count: 1033 words.
Summary: Sometimes keeping secrets can be dangerous or a heavy burden, which is what Kathleen has been doing for years. She will also be in charge of guiding Steve Rogers into this century; meanwhile, S.H.I.E.L.D. will be looking for a way to kick-start the Avengers Initiative by integrating her as one of the superheroes, but that won't be the only danger they face.
Warnings: Jealous.
A/N: After long time working on this longfic, I finally post it. If you wanna be added to the taglist, let me know.
My native language is Spanish so I wanna improve my writing skills in English if you notice any mistakes, please let me know and I will correct them.
I don’t give any kind of permission that my fics to be posted on other platforms or languages (I translate myself my work) or the use of my graphics (my dividers are included in this), I did them exclusively for my fics, please respect my work and don't steal it. There are some people here who make dividers that anyone can use, mine is not this type, please look for the other's people. The only exception is the ones I gifted 'cuz now belong to someone else. If you find any of my works on a different platform and are not one of my accounts, please let me know. Reblogs and comments are always welcome.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Marvel's characters (unfortunately), except for the original characters and the story.
Add yourself to my taglist here.
My other media where I publish:  Ao3, Wattpad, ffnet, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter. 
If you like it, please vote, comment, and give me feedback to improve my skills and reblog.
You can read it on Wattpad and Ao3 too. Secrets masterlist. Previous chapter. Next chapter.
Tumblr media
The noise that the punching bag made when being constantly beaten was the only thing that was heard in the gym that belonged to the STRIKE team. Brock was alone in the room. The training schedules were over, so he took advantage of the time. At another time, he would no longer be there. Most likely, he was with Kath, but that was exactly where the problem lay. She was very busy helping Steve.
Brock hit the sack harder when Steve's name went through his head. He was furious. He didn't like it when Kath focused her attention on anyone other than him.
Now, what would the missions look like? Wouldn't she be with the team anymore? Would they spend less time together? No! Things couldn't go on like this.
Although he had not dared to confess his feelings to her until that point, it was not because he did not want to, but because if someone of higher rank found out, they would be in serious trouble, not to mention Kath would be in grave danger.
He had always been careful with his thoughts for her sake, but that didn't mean the damn "golden boy" was going to ruin what it took him so much time and effort to build.
The noise of the door closing caused him to startle, coming out of his thoughts in this way. He managed to dodge the sack that almost hit him and turned to see who the person who had entered was. He sighed, disillusioned by seeing Jack. For a moment, he thought it was Kath. He even imagined her going to him and kissing him while whispering how much he hated Rogers.
"What are you doing here?" Brock asked.
"I wanted to see if you were here to invite you to a few beers," Jack replied.
Tumblr media
They didn't go to the bar they usually go to with the team; they chose one near Jack's house.
"This whole thing with Rogers is already getting to me."
"It's not a big deal; we all know that he didn't do great things as the books say; he couldn't even fight enemies." The most pathetic thing was that he ended up frozen, "Jack supported."
"I must stop this," Brock said, standing up and leaving the money at the bar.
"Where are you going?" Jack asked if he was imitating his friend.
"With Kath, I'll make things clear to that guy."
As soon as Brock started his motorcycle, heading to her house, Jack followed him on his motorcycle. More than anything, he feared that because of the effects of alcohol, Brock would talk more.
In desperation, Rumlow rang the doorbell of the house several times. Kath opened the door. She was surprised to see her friend there. Since she was taking care of Steve, he had been refusing to go visit her. They only saw each other at work when their schedules coincided.
"Brook, is something wrong?" She inquired while reading Brock's mind, or at least trying to. The thoughts were very confusing, but the hatred of Steve was evident, although it seemed incoherent since they had not even crossed any words. Instead of answering, Brock just walked in. Kath was about to close the door when she noticed Jack behind her and looked at him in confusion. "What's wrong with him?"
"Don't listen to him; he's drunk," Jack replied as he walked in.
"Is he here?" Brock asked.
"Kath?" Steve called with concern.
Kath used her powers to make Brock stand still. She didn't want to create a scandal.
"Here, a friend came." He's Brock Rumlow. The one on the right is Jack Rollins. They both work at SHIELD. "He's Steve Rogers," Kath said.
As Brock waved his head, something in his mind told him he couldn't do what he wanted, and he began to suspect that Kath was influencing him. On the other hand, Jack made a crooked smile as a greeting, and Steve watched both men closely. Kath had never told him about them, but he recognized Brock; he was in some photos that the girl had saved.
"I think we should leave." If Brock is not in a good state, you could create a portal for us to get home. I don't think it's a good idea for me to handle the
"I'm fine," Brock grumbled.
"You're not," Kath said. "Jack is right, so he'll take you home, and you'll stay there."
Brock pursed his lips and then grimaced. He couldn't deny anything, at least not her; however, he believed that this was an "indirect warning to his rival," so he approached Kath and hugged her, taking the rest of those present by surprise. It took the girl a few seconds to understand and react to what was happening.
"Go with Jack; I'm sure you'll have a big hangover tomorrow; see you on Monday at work," Kath said.
Brock nodded as Jack grabbed his shoulder to separate them. Kath opened the portal.
"I'm going to leave him on the sofa, and right now I'm coming for the motorcycles," Rollins said shortly before entering the portal.
After they left, Steve finally walked over. He didn't understand what happened in its entirety.
"Who were those men? Is everything okay? What did they want?" he asked.
"Everything is fine," Kath confirmed. Brock is my friend and Strike Team Commander, and Jack is a coworker and deputy commander of the same team. As you can see, Brock was drunk. Sometimes he is a little impulsive in that state. Kate, I'm sorry you met them in this situation.
"Since when have you known each other?"
"Well, I think several years ago."
Tumblr media
Kath closed her bedroom door and sat on the chair in front of the dressing table, starting to brush her hair as she tried to understand what she had seen when Brock hugged her.
The scene was somewhat confusing, with a lot of smoke, and she was crying, while Brock would not let her ask her to kill him, and his voice sounded very stern. Hurt? She could not even see it. What has happened? She also did not know where they were. Was it a premonition?
Tumblr media
Ꭲꭺꮐꮮꮖꮪꭲ:
@saiyanprincessswanie​​  @sinceimetyou​​ @unnuevosoltransformalarealidad​​
@navybrat817​​ @angrythingstarlight​​ @shield-agent78​​ @charmed-asylum​​ @pandaxnienke​​  @real-fbi​​ @smokeandnailz​​ @white-wolf1940​​  @tenaciousperfectionunknown​ ​ @xoxonotme​​  @bluemusickid​​ @leyannrae​​  @harrysthiccthighss​​ @marvelatthisone​​ @caplanbuckybarnes​​ @sapphire-rogers​​ @lizzieolseniskinda​ @notyourtypicalrose​​ @hallecarey1​  @nana1000night​​ @talia-rumlow​​ @mylifeispainandiloveit​​ @writingshae​​ @alexxavicry​​ @azulatodoryuga​​ @daemonslittlebitch​​​  @sweater-daddiesdumbdork​​  @jtargaryen18​ @chaoticcollectivenightmare​ @endlesstwanted​  @chemtrails-club​  @marigoldreamer​  @whiskeytangofoxtrot555​ @here4thefanfics​ @theestorm​​ @patzammit​
25 notes · View notes
tres-fidelis · 3 months
Note
mistake, for everyone on the blog <:
oc asks: not-so-nice edition
mistake: What's the worst mistake your OC ever made? What led to them making it? Have they been able to fix it? How have they moved on?
Tumblr media
((Rin shouldn't have argued with her parents the night they died. Not only was it distracting to them both, but Rin's last words to her parents were very vitriolic in nature. It was a one-sided, selfish argument, and as she looked back on it years later she realized they were only saying these things to her out of genuine concern. They only wanted the best for her, to be safe and pursue a passion which wouldn't lead her into anything potentially dangerous.
But those fleeting moments where both her parents took their eyes off the road were the last moments Rin ever had to try atoning for her actions. Little Rin was too heated in the moment thinking her parents were going against her own desires. Before Rin realized everything she said and the actions following the impact of the other car, her parents were gone. She couldn't apologize to them for her stupidity, and she'll never get that chance. Rin killed her parents, and it's made her hate herself since that day.))
Tumblr media
((The one time KC decided to schedule an interview on her own accord nearly cost the girl's own safety and her family's reputation. It was one of those undercover, hot gossip reporters disguised as a newspaper group. They baited KC into revealing some private information concerning her family's heritage, along with KC's own background. They told her it was for an upcoming show centered around young celebrities and how they came to fame. It would be a feature in their newspaper too, for other young people to read. She was more than happy to provide and tell her story, but in the end the entire interview was used against her.
The family found out via breaking news, and in published magazine articles. They confronted KC about the situation but KC never suspected them to be these kinds of horrible people. From then on, KC wasn't allowed much freedom to roam around public concert halls after their performances, nor could she wander off without a bodyguard by her side.))
Tumblr media
((There's been...a handful of mistakes Jayden has made which cost her a lot of horrible consequences, mostly done by her awful, abusive father.
Back when she was still a little kid and attending middle school, she skipped one day because she couldn't bare to get out of her own bed. Her mom was the only one to know about it, and she even called the school that day to say Jayden came down with a cold. Instead of her mom going to work, she stayed with Jayden the whole day. It was nice having a quiet house with just the two of them. No yelling, no screaming, no distant shouting or sounds of things being broken. It was peaceful for once.
But once dad came back home, it turned violent. The school called him, as well, to notify him that his daughter hadn't come into school that day. You can imagine the kind of consequences Jayden received from skimping out on school. On top of the usual verbal abuse, her father grew more physically violent against her. Hair pulling, slapping her face, roughhousing her, all to teach her lesson to never lie about something so serious and to never lie to higher authorities either.))
3 notes · View notes
simshousewindsor · 1 year
Photo
Tumblr media
News out of Sumpterson Estate of the sudden death of King George I was received by the nation with profound sorrow. The announcement from the palace at 10:20 this Tuesday morning said:
"The King, who retired to rest last night in his usual health, passed peacefully away in his sleep early this morning."
King George was 61 years of age and was in the thirty-first year of his reign. He was known to have been suffering from a worsening heart condition.
A meeting of the Accession Council was held this morning to proclaim the accession of Princess Katherine as the new Sovereign. She will soon be on her way home with the Duke of Brindleton Bay and the royal aircraft, which will now leave Brindleton Bay at 9:00 AM after being delayed by a thunderstorm. The Princess is expected to reach Easton at 1:30 PM tomorrow afternoon, when she will take the Royal Oath which will seal her accession to the throne.
Tumblr media
The King's last public appearance was at Edward I Royal Airport on Thursday last week to depart for Sumpterson, a private royal residence. Although he looked thinner in recent weeks, many speculated His Majesty’s weight loss was due to diet changes. His sudden death comes just over a year after having a heart operation.
The Queen consort was at Sumpterson with the King, who was out on Monday morning and also in the afternoon. Her Majesty had just arrived in Sumpterson yesterday, later than initially scheduled.
Arrangements for the lying-in-state and for the funeral must wait on the decisions of the new Queen.
Tumblr media
After the Prime Minister in the House of Commons and Lady Nadira Romanov in the House of Lords had expressed their grief at the news both Houses adjourned, as did also the Courts of Justice.
Prince Phillip is now heir to the throne and his sister Princess Grace becomes second in succession with Princess Lara third.
The Proclamation of Accession to be read tomorrow was signed by members of the Privy Council at Windenburg Parliament this morning. The text is as follows:-
"Whereas it hath pleased Almighty God to call to His mercy our late sovereign lord King George the First of blessed and glorious memory by whose decease the Crown is solely and rightfully come to the High and Mighty Princess Katherine Isabella: we therefore the Lords Spiritual and Temporal of this Realm being here assisted with these his late Majesty's Privy Council with representatives of other members of the Commonwealth with other Principal Gentlemen of quality with the Lord Mayor, Aldermen and Citizens of Easton do now hereby with one Voice and Consent of Tongue and Heart publish and proclaim that the High and Mighty Princess Katherine Isabella is now by the death of our late sovereign of happy memory become Queen Katherine the First by the grace of God. Queen of this realm and of her other realms and territories, head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the faith to whom her lieges do acknowledge all Faith and constant Obedience with hearty and humble Affection beseeching God by whom Kings and Queens do reign, to bless the Royal Princess Katherine the first with long and happy years to reign over us. God save the Queen"
The Prime Minister will broadcast a message to the nation at two o'clock tomorrow afternoon. Stay tuned to SNN for live coverage from both Sumpterson and Buckingsim Palace.
Previous | Beginning | Next
11 notes · View notes
puddygeeks · 1 year
Text
Wᴀɴᴛᴇᴅ Dᴇᴀᴅ Oʀ Aʟɪᴠᴇ - Sᴛʀᴀɴɢᴇʀ Tʜɪɴɢs, Eᴅᴅɪᴇ Mᴜɴsᴏɴ/OC - Cʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 5: Iᴍᴘᴜʟsᴇs
Tumblr media
Masterlist
Episode: Pre season 4
Rating: Mature
Summary: Since she was five years old, Marcie Bell and Eddie Munson have been inseparable. There was never one without the other. That is, a near death experience with the Mind Flayer changed everything. Now, Marcie must navigate her newly realised feelings for Eddie, whilst facing down the Upside Down all over again. Whoever said love was easy?!
Fix it fic. There will be absolutely no Eddie Munson death here!
Fandom: Stranger Things
Pairing: Eddie Munson x OC
Status: Ongoing
My writing is entirely fueled by coffee! If you enjoy my work, feel free to donate toward my caffeine dependency: will work for coffee  
Warnings: 𝑀𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡. 𝐷𝑟𝑢𝑔/𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑜ℎ𝑜𝑙 𝑢𝑠𝑒, 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑢𝑙𝑡/𝑑𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑘𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑝𝑖𝑘𝑒𝑑, 𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑠𝑡, ℎ𝑢𝑟𝑡, 𝑠𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑏𝑢𝑟𝑛, 𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑢𝑛𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑒𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠, 𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑚𝑎, ℎ𝑖𝑔ℎ 𝑠𝑐ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑙 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑚𝑎, 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ, 𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑈𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝐷𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑓𝑢𝑐𝑘𝑒𝑟𝑦.    
Taglist: @toobsessedsstuff
A/N: I am so sorry for the massive delay in getting this published. It was a real struggle to make this chapter work and took many edits, but we got there in the end! As for my posting schedule, I actually just had my first baby a couple of weeks ago so life is complete chaos right now. I still absolutely plan to write when I can but I have no idea when that will be. Thanks for sticking with me anyway. Every kudos and comment means the world to me <3
♫  ♠  ♫  
Chapter 5
Robin and Steve looked equally uneasy as they followed Marcie into the dive bar. Their feet stuck to the floors as they walked, residue of spilt drinks or other substances that didn’t bear thinking about now decorating the soles of their shoes. Though there was a gig planned, it was surprisingly quiet with only around 10 drunks hanging around by the bar. However, they could only shake their heads in bemusement at the way Marcie strolled in and waved at several of the audience as if she was in her element. 
Marcie approached the bar with confidence, chuckling at how lost her friends looked behind her. Despite being underage, she knew all of the tricks to a good night out at this venue and simply ordered three colas, planning to top hers up from the flask that was hidden in the back of her jeans. She gestured for the other two to come take their glasses when she caught the eye of a familiar older customer who sat on a stool nearby.
“I was starting to wonder where you were.” Terry called as he wandered over to her side with a teasing smile. “Your boy’s playing tonight. He was looking nervous without you.”
“He’s not my boy, Terence.” Marcie scolded lightly, her words making as little impact on the clearly drunk man as usual.
“Sure he’s not and I’m stone cold sober.” He laughed, before turning to nod toward the others. “You bought friends? Almost enough to count as an actual audience here now. Let me know if any of you want a beer. My treat.” 
“Thanks for the offer, but you know I always have my own supply. Besides, I think I’m the only alcoholic in my crew.” Marcie winked, breaking away from the well meaning bad influence to rejoin her friends who seemed utterly horrified by the interaction.
“You hang out with a lot of creepy old men who like to get teens drunk?” Steve questioned whilst she pulled out her flask to mix a drink.
“Yes, actually. This is the Corroded Coffin fan club. Welcome.” She teased, breaking into a laugh at the way that Steve’s brows shot up. “You should really learn not to judge a book by its cover, Harrington. Terry used to babysit my mom. He’s one of the good ones. He’s still pretty well known for keeping an eye on the youngsters here. I got spiked a couple years ago and he took care of me until he could hand me over to Eddie.”
“By buying underage kids alcohol?” He questioned, noticing that even Robin was slipping her the side eye for this.
“As if you never drank underage.” She scoffed, before rolling her eyes at his judgement. “Terry’s policy is simply that it’s better to allow people to break the rules in a safe way, by getting weak, unspiked drinks from someone who will ensure they don’t get wasted, than to leave them to get taken advantage of by trying to find their own way.”
Clearly not entirely convinced by this story, Steve simply shook his head and glanced at Robin, who made a concerted effort to disguise how uncomfortable she was. Marcie shrugged it off as she led them closer to the stage ready for the show. After years of hanging out with Robin, she’d got used to having to remind herself that not everyone grew up in the same white trash environment that she and Eddie did. Things that seemed mundane to them were shocking to others and she had learned that most times it was easier to agree to disagree.
“I do appreciate you guys coming with me tonight. I know this isn’t really your scene.” She remarked, flashing them both a smile that seemed to at least partially calm them. “This place gets a bad rep, but it’s really fine. Most of the sketchy people won’t arrive until much later. And if at any point it gets too weird for you, we’ll leave. Okay?”
“I’d still rather if either of you wanted a beer you asked me.” Steve pointed out, earning a sceptical look from both girls. “You’re right. I’ve been drinking for years, but not through creepy old guys. I have a fake ID.”
“Okay, Mom.” Robin groaned, easily earning a snigger from Marcie.
The unexpected comment eased the tension in the group, and in little time at all Robin and Steve had already engaged in one of their usual spats. Marcie was content to sip on her drink, only half listening to their conversation as she watched the empty stage. 
There was a far stronger feeling of apprehension in her stomach tonight as she waited for the band to appear. As well as she had done until now, she was painfully aware that there was no time more challenging for keeping her attraction under control than when watching Eddie perform. No matter how badly she wanted to be here for him, there was something about him playing guitar that drove her absolutely wild every time. 
A couple of drunken cheers echoed around the draughty space, announcing the arrival of the band and as her friends finally stopped bickering to position themselves on either side of her, Marcie steeled herself. 
From the moment that Eddie stepped foot on the stage, he began scanning the area with a nervous expression. It only faded to a relieved smile when his gaze landed on her face. In an instant, she knew that she had made the correct decision by pushing herself to attend and couldn’t even bring herself to imagine how crushed he would’ve been if she’d missed it. 
With his confidence restored, Eddie moved to the front of the stage to get the crowd hyped up. It wasn’t long before the usual band of drunks were cheering together to the songs and even Robin and Steve found a way to enjoy themselves, as he returned from the bar with beers for the two of them whilst he nursed another cola. 
Marcie finished her drink rather quickly as a result of repeatedly catching Eddie’s eyes and being unable to withstand feeling as if he was singing directly to her. There was no denying that she would find the man attractive if he was wearing a garbage bag, but whilst dressed in his ripped jeans and shirt, his hair thrashing in the dim backlighting of the stage, she could have fallen in love with him all over again.
Eddie strutted the stage with a confidence befitting any rockstar, his husky voice blasting from the speakers and sending shivers down Marcie’s back. Just as she felt as if she could hardly keep her thoughts clean, he descended into an epic guitar solo that drew her attention to his hands. Watching the way that he worked the strings, the spotlights reflecting off his signature rings, she found herself biting her lip.
By half way through the set, she gave up on mixing drinks and instead took sips directly from the flask in an effort to suffocate the rising desire in her chest. Between songs, Robin bumped into her side and flashed her a concerned expression.
“I don’t want to kill your buzz, but you might want to slow down on the drinks, Marce.” She fretted, glancing to Steve for backup. “I know you can hold your liquor, but I’m starting to fear for your liver.”
“My liver has been well trained. Believe me, it can handle it.” Marcie insisted. “Besides, it’s all part of my tactic. I’m having a drink every time that I think of non-friendship thoughts. It’s helping me to bury them.”
“Actually, I think it might be bringing them out.” Steve argued and she turned to face him with confusion. “You’re totally giving him bedroom eyes.” He added, his accusation supported by Robin snorting with laughter.
“I am not!” Marcie gasped, whipping her head between the pair of them in horror.
“You kinda are.” Robin choked out between breaths. “You look like you want to climb up there and devour him. Why do you think he keeps looking at you?” She cackled as she necked the last of her drink and put the empty glass aside as if she didn’t ever want to touch alcohol again.
“It’s okay, Robin. We’re clearly imagining it.” Steve interrupted with an equally amused smile. “Just like the little bit of drool you’ve got right there.” He continued, pointing to the corner of Marcie’s lips.
“Where? Right here?” She crooned mockingly, before reaching out to punch him in the arm. “You two suck.”
♫  ♠  ♫
Eddie struggled to concentrate during the cleanup of their set. Though he’d been delighted to find that Marcie had attended tonight, he couldn’t deny the fact that her bringing Harrington along had gotten under his skin. Sure, it added to their usually sparse audience, but he couldn’t stand the thought that she might use one of their gigs as an opportunity for a date.
Then again, if that was the case then Harrington had absolutely failed to get her attention throughout the night. He held a smug satisfaction for the way that Marcie’s gaze had been glued to him during the entire set. Now that he thought about it, perhaps that had been the cause of his distraction. He felt somewhat strange for thinking it, but he could’ve sworn there was something different in her eyes tonight, something strangely resembling desire.
Eddie shook his head to dislodge the thought before it could settle, rushing to finish the job so that he could assess the dynamic between the pair for himself. It took longer than usual to pack up without his head in the game, but eventually they finished loading the van and he was able to re-enter the bar. He pushed through the crowd that had begun to gather for the next act looking for any sign of the trio, but was only able to find Marcie and Robin near the door.
Robin was standing protectively by Marcie, who was half sat, half leaned against a bar stool clutching her ankle. They both seemed in high spirits still, talking loudly and laughing together, but something seemed off about his friend that caused him to rush over to join them.
“Hey, Marce. Are you alright?” He blurted the moment that he reached them and Robin startled as if she hadn’t noticed him coming.
“Eddie!” Marcie breezed, turning to him with a familiar sense of delight that indicated she had been drinking rather heavily. “I’m totally fine. I might’ve just missed the step coming out of the restrooms and given my ankle a little roll. Fortunately, the whiskey has numbed all pain.”
“Unfortunately, she’s walking like a wounded animal.” Robin cut in, throwing her a long suffering look that hinted she had been the one to force her into a seat. “She’s sprained it, but apparently doesn’t think that should stop her from dancing. We’re gonna take her home before she really hurts herself.”
Eddie chuckled at her enthusiasm, especially when she stuck out her tongue at Robin. It was exactly the kind of behaviour he would expect from drunk Marcie. She was the kind of person who wouldn’t let anything ruin a great night, but judging from the heaviness of her blinks and the slight sway in her position, they were correct in deciding that the time had come to remove her.
“Getting high of your own supply again, Hells Bells?” He teased, a fond smile filling his lips.
“You know it.” She answered with a devious expression, opening her jacket to reveal the trusty flask he’d bought for her last Christmas. “You guys were great tonight. You really tapped into your rockstar performance. The way you handled that guitar-”
“-Had girls swooning. Other girls!” Robin interjected.
Eddie raised his brows in surprise at her flirtatious attitude, wondering exactly what she would’ve said if not interrupted. Robin made a conscious effort to catch her friend's attention, her eyes wide in warning as if silently instructing her to keep quiet. Marcie giggled to herself, amused by her antics.
Eddie opened his mouth to question how they were getting home, when the answer rushed through the door. Harrington seemed flustered as he jogged to Robin’s side, barely even noticing Eddie’s presence as he turned his concern to Marcie.
“I’ve moved the car out front, but security is only giving me a couple of minutes so we need to be quick.” He explained, looking sceptical of her speed when she stood and immediately winced. “Okay. You know what? Hold on.”
Without warning, he crouched to lift Marcie and threw her gracelessly over his shoulder. 
“Steve!” She squealed in shock, before releasing a slurred laugh as she dangled over his back. Eddie felt his temper rising at how casually he handled her and when Robin moved to wave goodbye, he couldn’t prevent the words from escaping.
“Woah! Hold on a second.” He spat, grabbing Harrington’s arm to hold him in place. “What’s your plan here? You can’t take her home like that. Her mom will freak.”
Whilst Harrington focused on analysing him, Robin appeared as if she had only just considered this problem. Eddie held his rival’s gaze, struggling to contain the need to rip Marcie out of his grip as he willed himself to use his words instead. His hands clenched at his sides as he forced his attention away from the places that Harrington was gripping her.
“He’s right. Her mom is cool with most things, but she’ll be pissed that she got drunk enough to injure herself. She at least needs some time to sober up.” Robin conceded, drawing the attention of Harrington who observed her with confusion. “I could take her back to mine?”
“Yeah? Your parent’s cool with your friends getting too wasted to walk?” Eddie questioned, waiting a few moments for Robin to shake her head in a defeated manner.
“I’m fine!” Marcie slurred, attempting to fidget out of the tight hold. “And perfectly capable of my own choices, thank you. Put me down, Steve!”
“She can crash at mine.” Harrington suggested, ignoring the squirming of the girl on his shoulder despite Robin’s obvious disapproval. “I’ve got a spare room and my parents are away. I’ll drive her home in the morning. No harm, no foul.”
“Absolutely not!” Eddie growled, his voice filled with an intensity that caused both of the people before him to flinch. “Look, I’m the one who lives closest. I’ll drive her back to mine, she can put her foot on ice, hang until she’s sobered up and walk back when she’s ready.”
Marcie’s friends turned to face him with scepticism, as if they were aware of something that he was not. They didn’t answer this suggestion for a few moments, instead peering at each other in silent conversation, until Marcie gagged from being held on her stomach and Robin grew tired of watching Harrington hold her captive.
“Steve, put her down before she pukes all over you.” She warned, reaching out to assist him in lowering her to the ground delicately so that she wouldn’t fall. “I can tell my parents I’m staying at Marcie’s and come back with you. You’ve still got a few movies from the store to catch up on. We can make it into a sleepover. What do you think, Marce?”
There was something about the way that Robin pushed this idea on her friend, gripping her shoulders to focus her attention, that didn’t sit right with Eddie. Behind her, Harrington gave her a meaningful look too, as if they were both encouraging her toward the decision. Though he was sure that their intentions were good, he couldn’t deny the feeling that she wasn’t being given a choice and couldn’t understand why they would blatantly ignore his offer.
“Guys, as much as I love your company between work and school, I think I’ve seen quite enough of you lately.” Marcie answered, her words bleeding into each other from the effects of the whiskey. “I want to go with Eddie. He’ll take care of me.” 
For a few moments, Eddie faltered as she turned her half lidded gaze to him with a dozy smile. His heart skipped a beat, hardly able to believe that she had so clearly chosen him and he couldn’t help returning her smile.
“If that’s what you want, then I’d be happy to have you.” He offered, relishing the way that her eyes lit up at his words. “She can take my bed if needed. It’s only a short walk home and Wayne’s working tonight so no one even has to know that she was there.”
“Oh, I’m sure her mom would love that.” Robin grumbled, her arms crossed over her chest as she seemed to struggle to decide whether she was more annoyed by his behaviour, or Marcie’s.
“Actually, she’s pretty cool about her staying out, as long as she’s kept updated. Just pass a message that she’s staying at yours. Her mom won’t even care.” He countered, noticing that Robin didn’t seem convinced. “She slept at mine when she got spiked, too. I know how to cover for her. It’ll just sound better coming from you.”
Harrington nudged her side, quirking his brow in silent question and Robin sighed in defeat as she noticed that her friend was still smiling at Eddie in delight.
“It’s her decision. She trusts him, she said she wants to go with him, so we should respect that.” Harrington muttered, barely loud enough for Eddie to hear as he leaned closer to check on Marcie.
“I parked at the back to load up the equipment. You gonna be okay to walk that far?” He asked in a hushed tone, and she rolled her eyes.
“I only sprained my ankle, Eddie.” She chuckled, shaking her head at his concern. “It might take me a bit longer than usual, but the fresh air will do me some good anyway.”
“If you say so. I just didn’t want anyone accusing me of not treating a lady in the way that I should.” He teased, winking at her and noticing that a rosy blush spread across her cheeks.
“You wouldn’t know what to do with a lady, even if you found one.” She retorted, issuing a challenge without even realising it.
“Fine. She’s all yours.” Robin announced, turning back from whispering with her conspirator and Eddie couldn’t prevent a smug smile from spreading across his face.
“Alright, my lady. Your chariot awaits!” He announced, dipping down to meet her before she could protest.
When he lifted her from the ground he made a point of demonstrating that his treatment of her was far more careful than Harrington’s had been. He balanced her in a bridal style carry, pausing for a moment to reestablish his balance from the additional weight before navigating only slightly clumsily out of the door.
“You’re a nutcase, Munson!” Marcie giggled in his embrace.
Her arms came to rest around his shoulders and her head nuzzled into his neck, as if she were hiding from the cold of the nighttime air. It was strangely nostalgic to have her this close to him, but he knew that he couldn’t show too much joy for this situation as he felt her two friends following closely behind.
When he reached the van, he lowered her into the passenger seat, taking extra care to ensure that he didn’t bump her injured foot and turned to find Robin lurking behind him as if she was waiting to check on her. In a bid to keep the peace, he stepped aside to allow them to catch up whilst Harrington seized the opportunity to grill him on everything he’d had to drink tonight to prove that he was safe to drive.
Stepping closer to the van, Robin leaned against the door to examine her clearly incapacitated friend. Although she knew that she had promised not to hold her responsible for the events of the evening, she couldn’t help feeling as if she had somehow let her down by allowing her to end up in Eddie’s care and for her own peace of mind, she needed to confirm one final time that this was the correct decision. 
“Are you sure you’re good with this, Marcie?” She asked quietly, her brows knitting together in concern. “I thought you didn’t want to be alone with Eddie?” She questioned, noticing that in her current state Marcie seemed thoroughly confused at this suggestion.
“Eddie will look after me! Eddie always looks after me.” She stated in a tone of minor offence, but seeming to notice the worry in her friend’s face, she flashed her an understanding smile. “I’ll be fine, Robs. I promise. I’m just having a moment of weakness. This isn’t your fault. I’m not mad at you and I won’t be tomorrow. You can go home.”
Though reassured by her surprisingly clear consent, Robin hesitated for a few moments longer until she noticed Eddie making his way around to the driver's side. She quickly checked her friend's seatbelt, then faced her with a forced smile.
“Alright, Marce. You deserve a night off from your heartbreak.” She breathed, despite a tightening in her chest. “But if he does anything to upset you, I’m going to take a page from your book and come after him with a baseball bat. Capiche?”
“Capiche.” Marcie laughed. “Night, Robs.”
♫  ♠  ♫
Eddie had his hands literally full with attempting to coordinate unlocking the door to his trailer, whilst also keeping Marcie upright. With only one hand available to grip her, he wrapped an arm around her waist and clung to her hip as she sagged against him, mentally willing the door to give him a break.
Unfortunately for him, the fresh air had only caused the alcohol in her system to take further effect and she seemed significantly more drunk than she had at the bar. Now he had her complete lack of inhibitions to contend with alongside her injury.
Without warning, the door swung open and they practically fell inside, Eddie barely managing to catch Marcie before she face-planted the floor. He paused to prop her against a wall, instructing her not to move before turning back to lock up for the night.
He was so distracted with the task that he failed to even notice her moving around behind him. In fact, he was practically completely lost in his own thoughts on his next move as he seemed to only just have considered how strange this situation was after she had been avoiding him for weeks. 
It occurred to him now that he might have scored the perfect opportunity to ply the truth from her, but a small, niggling part of him wondered if the truth was really something that he wanted to hear. Not fully present in the moment, Eddie turned slowly toward the living room and slid off his denim jacket, followed by his leather jacket, throwing them both onto the couch where he realised he would likely be sleeping tonight. 
It was only when he spun back to where Marcie had been standing that it dawned on him something was wrong, something he never would have imagined in a million years would happen to him. He froze to the spot, his eyes widening to an extent that he was sure they hadn’t ever before.
In the time that she’d been unsupervised, Marcie had dropped her jeans to the ground and stepped out of them. Her t-shirt was already making its way over her head, thankfully giving way to a tight silk camisole that protected at least some of her modesty. However, the length of this garment failed to cover the very small pair of black lace panties that were currently on display to him, cutting over her perfect ass in a way that made his mouth fall open.
Eddie wanted to speak, to say anything to interrupt her, but the words seemed to fail him. He stuttered the syllables, desperate to prove to himself that he wasn’t a creep, but no sound emerged. Instead, he found himself staring as she threaded her hands under the delicate straps of her cami to fish out a bra that matched the panties, throwing it onto a dining chair in a mind blowing method that somehow kept her breasts covered the entire time.
Unable to allow this to continue any further, Eddie suddenly sprung into action as he leapt forward to grab her arms before she could remove anything else.
“Woah, woah!” He cried as he hurried into her space and she startled as if she had only just realised that he was present. “Christ, stop! What are you doing?”
“Eddie!” She gasped in surprise. “Don’t be a perv! Get out of my room.” She slurred her words, but the annoyance in her face cracked some of the tension between them.
“You’re in my trailer, Marce.” He chuckled, before his gaze was drawn downward by her attempting to cross her arms over herself despite her complete lack of coordination.
Through the thin fabric of the cami, Eddie caught sight of something he knew he absolutely should not have seen. The smallest sparkle of silver was visible on either side of her chest, its placement easily translating to Eddie who had spent more than his fair share of time staring at alternative models in magazines.
Eddie’s mouth rapidly became dry and he struggled to swallow the lump that had risen in his throat. He willed himself not to stare, already noticing that his pants seemed tighter and he shifted his grip on Marcie to hold her slightly further from him. He strained to think about anything other than the undeniable nipple piercings she had that were wreaking havoc on his mind, tearing his gaze from her altogether before he could say or do anything that he would later regret.
“Fuck me.” He cursed under his breath as he released her to search the room for anything that could remove the distraction.
At the bottom of a pile of old clothes, he managed to find a practically vintage trucker t-shirt of Wayne’s that was several sizes too big. Throwing it roughly over Marcie’s head, he was relieved to find that it covered both the piercings and her panties, the length coming down to her knees on her thin frame. 
“Better.” He choked out in a voice that was obviously strained, but Marcie seemed entirely too inebriated to notice. “Come on. You need some sleep.”
“M’not tired.” She grumbled, rubbing at her eyes and spreading an exceptional amount of black eye shadow all over the back of her hand.
Despite already being stained with more substances than Eddie cared to name, he worried how his sheets would fare against this amount of dark makeup. Unsure what he would be able to supply to assist in properly removing it, he decided that it was better for her to discover tomorrow morning that he’d at least tried to meet her needs.
With a heavy sigh, he wrapped an arm around her waist to lead her toward the bathroom. Squeezing into the tight space, he leaned her against the counter and busied himself with searching for a clean washcloth. After soaking it under the tap, he returned his attention to her face as he attempted to push aside her unruly locks. 
“You have so much hair.” He remarked, pushing as much as he could behind her ears to prevent drenching her. 
“Rich coming from you.” She scoffed and he could only smile at this entirely fair retaliation. 
“Alright. Sit still. I need to get some of this war paint off.” 
Marcie attempted to argue with him, but was quickly silenced when he pushed the cloth to her face. Regardless of his best efforts to be delicate, he couldn’t help some degree of clumsiness in his movements. The more that he wiped at her skin, the more the makeup seemed to simply push around and when he rinsed the cloth under the water, he chuckled under his breath at the state of her.
Instead of revealing clean skin as he’d hoped, she now resembled a child who had been wearing face paint in the hot summer sun. Concentrating his energy on the black eyeshadow and dark lipstick that would undoubtedly get everywhere, he managed to remove a reasonable amount, but eventually had to accept that soap and water couldn’t hold up against the staining under her eyes. 
When he finished, he rinsed the cloth again of the murky water, before he was distracted at the sight of the only hair tie that he owned. He spun Marcie around to face the mirror so that he could go to battle against her waist length locks. 
“Eddie! What did you do?” She slurred, leaning closer to the mirror whilst he gently yanked her back by her hair. “I look like a panda!” 
“Pandas are cute.” He chuckled, but the moment he removed his grip on her when he finished his task, she whipped around to flash him an annoyed pout. “Only so much I can do with soap and water. I don’t exactly have many lady visitors, Marce. You can’t say I didn’t try.” 
Marcie moved to storm out of the bathroom, but lost her balance almost immediately and Eddie shook his head as he swooped her into his arms again. 
“Easy, Sweetheart. Let’s get you to bed.” 
It was a challenge to navigate the narrow halls of the trailer with her laid across his chest, but he stuck with it anyway, knowing that it would take far longer to herd her back toward the bedroom. He almost tripped over the mess of clothes on the floor, barging his way over to the bed where he lowered her down as if she was made of glass. 
Finally tired enough to stop fighting him, Marcie sank into place as he lifted the covers over her in satisfaction. Her eyelids began to flutter closed from the moment that her head hit the pillow and he couldn’t resist hesitating for a moment, gently stroking the hair back from her face. However, when he turned to leave, she startled awake. 
“Where are you going?” She gasped, gripping onto his wrist with as much strength as she could muster and he spun back around to face her with a fond smile. 
“The couch.” He stated in a nonchalant manner. “You can have the bed, my lady.” 
“No. I don’t want you to go.” She slurred, causing Eddie to freeze to the spot for the second time tonight. 
Her brows were furrowed together with stubbornness, as if she hadn’t imagined for a second that he would leave her until now. By stark contrast, he had been deadly serious when he advised her friends of the sleeping arrangements. Sure, they had shared a bed before, but things were different nowadays. He hadn’t considered doing that again tonight at all and the very thought caused him to gulp. 
“I’m not gonna be far, Marce. Just the other side of the trailer.” He chuckled awkwardly, but her expression was unmoved. “You’re really drunk and I’m trying to respect your space. I really don’t mind the couch.” 
“But…I don’t want to be alone.” She admitted, her determination giving way to a vulnerability that caused his breath to catch in his throat. “Please stay with me, Eddie. Like old times.” 
Eddie’s stomach flipped at her words, his mind struggling to decide what the moral thing was to do. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t been in this exact situation with her in the past. He’d slept at her side when she got spiked, despite being sober himself, but that was mostly because he was afraid she might choke to death during the night. Then there was the night when the power went out and she ran to his trailer in fear of the storm. She’d demonstrated that she was comfortable with this arrangement before, but since she’d been avoiding him, he was unsure whether she would regret it in the morning.
He fidgeted on the spot as he agonised over the decision, but when his eyes met hers again, he felt his resolve begin to crumble. There was a sadness in them that he hadn’t seen before, something deep and hidden that made it almost impossible to deny her. He glanced back toward the couch again, before a defeated sigh left his lips. 
“Alright. You win.” He mumbled, watching as visible relief washed over her. 
Eddie switched off the light then removed his jeans, leaving his T-shirt on. He nudged Marcie to move her over so that he could climb in beside her, and was careful to ensure that he left plenty of space between them. It felt strange to stay so far apart, when they had spent the night snuggled into each other for warmth one winter when they couldn’t afford to heat the trailers. 
In the silence of the night, he stared at the ceiling unable to sleep. Where this would previously have been comfortable, he found himself feeling self conscious, worrying that he might have overstepped by bringing her to his home at all. The only sound to distract his wandering mind was Marcie’s breathing that grew steadily deeper and slower. 
Eddie couldn’t be sure how long they had laid there, when she shuffled closer to his side. Delicately, she leaned her head against his shoulder, one of her hands wrapping around his upper arm in a reserved embrace. Without thinking, he leaned his head toward her too, his jaw coming to rest on the top of her head and allowing him to breathe in the sweet scent of her hair. 
“I miss this.” She whispered, her voice barely even registering against the crushing silence of his bedroom. 
“Me too.” 
The confession escaped before he could stop himself, relieved when he felt her smile against him. Her breathing grew heavier still, indicating that she was battling against sleep and he debated whether it would be taking advantage of her condition to ask why she had been avoiding him. 
“I wish it could be like this all the time.” She admitted in a slow, sleepy voice and Eddie couldn’t resist the opportunity that she had presented him with.
“It can.” He muttered. “I don’t know why it ever changed.” 
“Because of the secret.” She slurred between deep sighs that almost sounded as if she was talking in her sleep. 
“What?” He questioned, his stomach dropping with nerves. “What secret?”
After a few moments without a response, he lifted his head to glance down at her, only to find that she had finally succumbed to her alcohol driven exhaustion. Eddie cursed under his breath. If he had thought that he was going to struggle to sleep before, he had no idea how energised this teasing comment would make him. 
He looked down at her dozing off, her face tucked into him as if it was the most comfortable place that she could be. It was the longest that he’d ever been able to stare at her, especially this close. Even with her hair messed up and eyeliner smeared down her face, he couldn’t help thinking how beautiful she was. It took a few more moments of admiring her before he acknowledged that a fleeting thought of kissing her at the back of his mind had grown to be all consuming. 
Wait. Shit! 
This was Marcie he was thinking about. The same girl who had given him wedgies when they were kids; the one who stuck chopsticks in her mouth and did walrus impressions; who almost got arrested with him one summer for a ridiculous firework prank and got sick on the waltzers at the last fair. She was his best friend, his partner in crime. He couldn’t ever risk doing anything to jeopardise what they had. 
However, he couldn’t deny what he felt as he noticed how peaceful she looked sleeping on his shoulder. He wanted to kiss her. 
Now that he considered it, it wasn’t the first time this thought had occurred to him. There had been numerous moments in the last few years where he had found himself wondering what it would be like to cross the boundary of friendship. Each time they had come close, it had been harder to pull himself back from the edge. The last time she slept over, he’d had to put himself through a cold shower after she left to try to clear his head. 
As hard as he tried to deny that anything had changed between them, he supposed it wasn’t unreasonable for him to have doubts. She was arguably the only person who he had allowed to get close to him in his entire life. She knew his darkest secrets, and he knew hers. They had comforted each other during the worst times, celebrated together during the best. It was inevitable that she would become important to him and it was only natural that he might wonder at the nature of their bond. It didn’t have to mean that he wanted more. 
Marcie shuffled closer in her sleep, her arm draping across his waist and he lifted his arm to allow her to snuggle into his chest. At this angle her head tilted slightly toward him, positioning her face exactly into the moonlight that streamed in through the window. 
In the dim light of the room, Eddie found himself utterly fixated on her lips. He was consumed by the thought of kissing her, acutely aware of every part where their bodies touched. Delicately, he reached out to tuck her fuzzy hair behind her ear, lingering his touch for a few seconds on her jaw. 
Her lips parted for a moment, a drunken mutter escaping that he couldn’t quite make out. His heart leapt into his throat as he replayed the sound in his mind and was almost able to convince himself that she had said his name. He watched as her lashes fluttered indicating that she was dreaming, only finding himself hoping that it was about him. 
Regardless of what he might tell himself, one thing was clear to Eddie at that moment: he had already passed the boundary of friendship a long time ago.
Tumblr media
9 notes · View notes
ammg-old2 · 9 months
Text
When Megan Nolan published her first novel, fellow authors warned her in “ominous tones” about the website Goodreads. The young Irish writer looked at the book’s listing there in the winter of 2020, the day the first proof copy arrived at her house. “Nobody but me and the publisher had seen it,” she wrote recently. “Despite this, it had received one review already: two stars, left by someone I had inconsequential personal discord with. It was completely impossible for him to have read the book.”
The terrible power of Goodreads is an open secret in the publishing industry. The review site, which Amazon bought in 2013, can shape the conversation around a book or an author, both positively and negatively. Today’s ostensible word-of-mouth hits are more usually created online, either via Goodreads or social networks such as Instagam and TikTok.
Publishers know how important these dynamics are, and so they send out advanced reading copies, or ARCs, not just to independent booksellers who might stock a title, but also to influencers who might make content about it. “There’s an assumption that if you receive an ARC that you will post about it,” Traci Thomas, host of the literary podcast The Stacks, told me—“whether that’s on your Goodreads, on your Instagram, on your TikTok, tell other people in your bookstore, or whatever. And so that’s how it ends up that there’s so many reviews of a book that’s not out yet.”
Many book bloggers are conscientious about including a disclaimer on their posts thanking the publisher for giving them an ARC “in exchange for an honest review.” But disclosing freebies is far from a contractual requirement or even a social norm. So you can’t easily discern which early reviewers have actually read the book, and which ones might be reacting to social-media chatter (or, as Nolan suspected in her case, prosecuting a personal grudge).
That matters because viral campaigns target unpublished books all the time. What tends to happen is that one influential voice on Instagram or TikTok deems a book to be “problematic,” and then dozens of that person’s followers head over to Goodreads to make the writer’s offense more widely known. Authors who reply to these attacks risk making the situation worse. Kathleen Hale—who was so infuriated by a mean reviewer that she tracked down the woman’s address—wrote later that the site had warned her against engagement: “At the bottom of the page, Goodreads had issued the following directive (if you are signed in as an author, it appears after every bad review of a book you’ve written): ‘We really, really (really!) don’t think you should comment on this review, even to thank the reviewer.’” Most authors I know read their Goodreads reviews, and then silently fume over them alone. Because I am a weirdo, I extract great enjoyment from mine—the more petty and baffling the complaints, the better. “I listened to the audiobook and by chapter 3 it started to annoy me the little pause she made before the word ‘male,’” reads one review of my book, Difficult Women.
When the complaints are more numerous and more serious, it’s known as “review-bombing” or “brigading.” A Goodreads blitzkrieg can derail an entire publication schedule, freak out commercial book clubs that planned to discuss the release, or even prompt nervous publishers to cut the marketing budget for controversial titles. Last month, the Eat, Pray, Love author Elizabeth Gilbert withdrew her upcoming novel The Snow Forest from publication because of the backlash she received after revealing it was set in Soviet Russia. The Goodreads page for The Snow Forest, which has since been taken down, accused her of romanticizing the Russian soul. “I’ll cut the job for you—they don’t have any,” wrote one reviewer. Another wrote: “Just like her characters in this nover [sic] are unaware of the events of WWII, Elizabeth Gilbert herself seems to be unaware of the genocidal war russia is conducting against Ukraine RIGHT NOW, because I’m sure if she knew, she’d realise how tone deaf this book is.”
The book had been scheduled for release next February, but in a video announcing that it was “not the time for this book to be published,” Gilbert essentially endorsed the Goodreads criticisms: “I do not want to add any harm to a group of people who have already experienced and who are all continuing to experience grievous and extreme harm.”
Now, I don’t know whether The Snow Forest romanticized the Russian soul or would somehow have caused “harm” to Ukrainians. Like my colleague Franklin Foer, I find the allegations hard to believe. But the plain fact is that neither of us know, because—and this should be obvious, although recent events suggest it is not—you don’t know what’s in a book you haven’t read. You also don’t know what’s in a film you haven’t watched, an album you haven’t heard, or an article you haven’t clicked on. That used to matter. It no longer does, because we live in a world where you can harvest likes by circulating screenshots of headlines and out-of-context video clips, and where marketing campaigns are big enough that they constitute artistic statements in themselves. (Barbie, I’m looking at you.)
Unfortunately, the artworks most likely to run into trouble in this viral hellscape are those that explore complicated, incendiary topics such as sex, race, and identity. Another Goodreads drama played out recently over Everything’s Fine, a debut novel written by Cecilia Rabess and published on June 6. Its plot centers on a young, progressive Black woman who falls in love with a conservative white man in the lead-up to Donald Trump’s election. “It obviously tackles some lightning-rod issues about race, class, and politics and identity in America,” Rabess told me, and so she expected strong reactions on Goodreads and similar sites. “But I think people certainly hadn’t read the book. And so I don’t know how they came to the conclusions that they did—that the book didn’t handle these topics carefully or thoughtfully or intentionally.”
Chalk that characterization up as writerly understatement. “It’s not enemies to lovers if you use it to excuse racists,” a typical one-star review read, referencing a common romance-novel trope. “Some authors shouldn’t be authors bc wtf is this!?” another offered. “i haven’t read this book nor do I plan to but having read the synopsis, I’m rating it 1-star,” a third confessed.
In the case of Everything’s Fine, the pile-on appears to have started on TikTok, where a handful of prominent creators criticized the book. The swell of anger then migrated to Goodreads, where those creators’ fans could register their disapproval. “i didnt and will not even read this i came from tiktok to say i hope the sales are so bad the bookstores have to throw away all inventory because it refuses to sell. anyone who gets an ARC of this should be ashamed,” noted another one-star review.
For Rabess, the experience was brutal. “As an artist, you’re prepared for people to not resonate with the work,” she said. “But I think it feels different when people decide that you yourself are problematic, or you yourself are causing harm, or whatever language they use to describe it. It feels a little bit surreal.” The backlash might have flourished on Goodreads, but it soon escaped to the wider internet. Rabess, who is Black, received angry direct messages and emails, as well as abusive comments under any social-media posts she made. “They said nasty things about me, about my children. Called me coon, other really unpleasant slurs. Told me that I’d be better off dead.”
The anger was scattershot. The commenters using racial slurs clearly knew Rabess’s race, but she wondered if some other online critics assumed that she was a white author intruding on territory they felt should be reserved for writers of color. While authors are sensibly told not to read the reviews—and certainly not to engage with critics—that’s harder when the critics come right up in your (virtual) face and shout their opinions at you.
As it happens, the podcaster Traci Thomas was among those who disliked Rabess’s book—albeit after reading an advance copy, back in January. “It’s an icky book,” she told me. She objected to what she saw as the moral of the story: Love conquers all, even being a Trump supporter. “The boyfriend in the book, Josh, is wearing a MAGA hat and, like, saying racist shit to [the female protagonist]. And she’s like, It’s fine. And the big revelation for her is that she can still choose to love him. And I’m just like: Okay, cool, go off—and I’m gonna tear this book to shreds.”
Ultimately, Thomas concluded, “I don’t know that the book needs to exist.”
Despite her own strong feelings, Thomas told me that she sometimes felt uneasy about her own reviews being surrounded by knee-jerk reactions and “performative allyship,” even by people whose politics she shared. “There are people who are new to anti-racism work or supporting LGBTQ people, or disability activism or whatever. And they feel it is their job to call out things that they notice without perhaps understanding the bigger historical context.” To illustrate the point, she gave an example: Imagine an author writes a book about Black children riding tricycles, “and then I’ll see a review that’s like, ‘This book didn’t talk about Black preschoolers who ride bikes, and they’re also at risk.’”
That dynamic explains one of the most initially counterintuitive aspects of viral pile-ons: that many seem to target authors who would agree with their critics on 99 percent of their politics. A strange kind of progressive one-upmanship is at work here: Anyone can condemn Ann Coulter’s latest book, but pointing out the flaws in a feminist or anti-racist book, or a novel by a Black female author, establishes the critic as the occupant of a higher moral plane.
The net effect of this is to hobble books by progressive authors such as Gilbert, and by writers of color such as Rabess. The latter is philosophical about the controversy over Everything’s Fine, seeing the backlash as representative of the political moment she was exploring in the novel—of “people feeling a dearth of community and connection, and just wanting a way to connect, a way to express themselves or express their anger.”
Of course, if Goodreads wanted to, it could fix the review-bombing problem overnight. When services that rely on user-generated content are only lightly moderated, it’s always a conscious decision, and usually a cold commercial one. After Gilbert pulled her novel from publication, The Washington Post observed that Amazon, which reportedly paid $150 million for Goodreads, now shows little interest in maintaining or updating the site. Big changes to a heavily trafficked site can be costly and risk annoying the existing user base: Reddit has recently faced down a moderators’ revolt for changes to how developers can access its tools, and Elon Musk’s tenure at Twitter—or whatever it’s now called—will one day be taught at business schools on a slide headlined “How to Lose Advertisers and Alienate People.” A purge of duplicate accounts might sweep up some fanatically devoted Goodreads users—people who can’t bear to share their opinion only once—and make the site feel less busy and exciting.
Goodreads spokesperson Suzanne Skyvara told me by email that the site “takes the responsibility of maintaining the authenticity and integrity of ratings and protecting our community of readers and authors very seriously.” She added that Goodreads is working to “stay ahead of content and accounts that violate our reviews or community guidelines” and has “increased the number of ways members can flag content to us.”
The main Amazon site has several measures in place to stop review-bombing: Reviews from verified purchasers of books are flagged as such to bolster their credibility, while the star rating is the product of a complicated algorithm rather than simply an average of all the review scores. Goodreads could adopt even more stringent measures—but then, it isn’t in the company’s interests to reduce volume in favor of quality, because its entire appeal is based around being a grassroots voice. “Goodreads really needs a mechanism for stopping one-star attacks on writers,” the writer Roxane Gay tweeted after Gilbert’s statement in June. “It undermines what little credibility they have left.” Traci Thomas agrees. In an email, she told me that she would like to see “verified users or reviews that get a check (or something) in exchange for proving they’ve read the book.”
If Amazon will not put the resources into controlling the wrath of Goodreads, then what fairness requires here is a strong taboo: Do not review a book you haven’t read. We should stigmatize uninformed opinions the way we stigmatize clipping your nails on public transport, talking with your mouth full, or claiming that your peacock is a service animal. A little self-control from the rest of us will make it easier for writers to approach incendiary topics, safe in the knowledge that they will be criticized only for things they’ve actually done.
3 notes · View notes